Her Twins
by DaemonicKitten
Summary: She's just an everyday, normal Trans-fan. One like any other you'd meet on the street, complete with habits and slang taken from almost living in the wake of the movies. When she realizes the hard way her fandom has suddenly become real, can she survive?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it. Some parts will be vaguely reminiscent of 'Science and Fiction' by **Faecat**, but I do not own any of them. Her story was a muse for some of the scenes. I claim ownership only to my OCs and my sparkling 'Sunfire'.

**Note** : I can't get over the OC-enters-TF-universe storyline. Sorry if my doing these annoys you. -.-' I write whatever I have the muse for. I do not own the 'diary entry' parts either, they were inspired by **Faecat**'s story, and I'm kind of sucky at diary entries, so they might just seem like summaries or thoughts, but...whatever works. Some are present tense, and sometimes past. If it bother's anyone, let me know and I'll see what I can do. They are only constant for about 2/3 of the story. :)

Also, I tried diary entry things some time ago, with another fandom, but didn't post it because the story never panned out. Either way, I claim ownership to only Sunfire, Bella and Rika. Wait, I said that above... LOL

**Summary** : She's just an everyday, normal Trans-fan. One like any other you'd meet on the street, complete with habits and slang taken from almost living in the wake of the movies. No one takes her seriously. Hell, she doesn't take herself seriously, but when what originally looks like a movie set turns out to be anything but, can she survive in a world she thought to exist only in fiction?

**Legend** :

"Speaking"

_Thoughts_

_**Lyrics/Messages**_

**Flashbacks/Visions/Dreams**

**(Scene/POV Changes)**

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I've always been a fangirl, fandoms coming and going. When I was younger, it was Power Rangers that started the trend. What can I say? Good looking men in skin tight spandex? Maybe I was just a closet perv. When that grew old to me, I was introduced to a new fandom, Final Fantasy. I can thank my grandmother for that one. Next came Twilight, off a suggestion made by a fanfiction friend. Finally, and most recently, Transformers._

_But do I really need to explain? I'm human. I can appreciate a good looking man or mech when I see one, and the newest Corvette model in the second Transformers movie was also very easy on the eyes, hence the poster across my bedroom ceiling._

_That's another topic for another time, though._

_I think my Transformers addiction was probably the most unusual thing about me, though. I've taken my fandoms pretty far before, cosplaying as Tifa and Yuna -Final Fantasy characters- on two separate years, or getting the Power Ranger action figures, and collecting the Collector's Editions of the Twilight Saga. I had the Autobot insignia tattooed to my chest, over my heart, usually hidden by modest necklines for work. I walked to and from work, jogged daily, sometimes hung out with friends, and usually spent a good hour online on a fanfiction site, where all kinds of writers got together and wrote fan-made stories for their favorite fandoms._

_I always loved reading the new stories people came up with. There was always _something_ that caught my eye._

_I wonder what that'll be today._

_-Bella._

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

Turning on my computer, I rolled my eyes as the fans kicked in noisily. I could have made some comment about it, but it was more annoying now than anything. My computer was fairly new, but for some reason, the fans had been kicking in loudly recently. My step-brother said it could be dust, but I wasn't really sure how that was possible. Did I not _just_ say my computer was _new_?

Well, _technically_, it was two years old, but it's not like I collected dust bunnies under my bed.

Heading over to my dresser, I peered into the mirror and ran a brush through my long, dark hair, before pulling it back into a ponytail. I examined my eyes closely. They were a pale blue. A color you could see on any number of people in the world today, and not at all unusual. Some people said it was pretty. I said it was boring. "Hm, to get the contacts or not to get the contacts." _I have today off, after all._ Biting my lip, I grabbed my purse and dug through it, counting the cash on me. "You know what? I'm _so_ treating myself today!" I pocketed some cash, before pulling the strap of the purse up over my shoulder.

It might seem odd to pull cash out of a purse before taking it -The purse- with you, but living in the city, I was taught the hard way to never keep all my money in one place, when I was mugged about a year ago. Ever since then, I broke up what money I kept with me, keeping only the absolutely necessary ID in my pockets, and only keeping extras in the purse itself.

With a smile fixed firmly to my face in anticipation of what was coming, I went back to the computer, signing in and turning off the screen, before grabbing my keys and heading out. I was so excited about my new contacts that I'd officially designated the fanfictions as 'can wait until later'. Locking up behind me, I could just about imagine what I'd look like with the newest contacts that I'd custom ordered. It had me almost skipping down the hall of my apartment complex and waiting impatiently for the bus as it approached.

I usually took the bus towards what I liked to call the market district, and then walked through to the general business district. The mall was there, doctor's offices were there, dentists, even a hospital. It had pretty much everything all crammed into one.

Thus was the life in Tranquility Nevada.

And yeah, trust me, I was pretty over the moon when I finally moved to _the_ city the Transformers movies were set in or based around. The first thing I did, before even unpacking, was take a massive tour, spending quite literally all day walking around the different neighborhoods until I found the house used as the prop for Sam's house. Next thing I did, a week later, was get a bus to neighbouring cities, and make my way to Mission City which, surprisingly, really existed. I toured here too, finding places that were still roped off for future movie usage.

As they were roped off, I couldn't actually get _on_ to the set, but I _did_ see the all too familiar form of the cute little 2010 Bumblebee Camaro SS. Of course, being the fangirl I was, the first thing I did was squeal loudly like a stuck pig, and then snap about two dozen pictures of the stationary vehicle from the same angle and distance.

I puttered around, finding the garage that was used as the garage Mikeala worked at, in the second movie, and immediately grabbed pictures of the bike sitting in the driveway. It wasn't one of the Arcee triplets, but the one Mikeala had been painting in the beginning of 'Revenge of The Fallen'. It was still a hot bike, even without the equally as hot actress sitting on top of it.

All in all, it was pretty amazing. Being here so long, most of the novelty had long worn off. I'd visited movie scenes multiple times, gotten pictures. I'd even spent several months looking for any more of the cars used in the movies, to no success. Maybe they were off in Egypt still, or in some other part of Nevada for the next movie. I'd heard rumors. Something about Sunstreaker's alternate form? Or possible alternate form?

To say I was psyched would be an understatement.

My eyes narrowed, and I swallowed, shifting my gaze out of the nearest window as I shook off my thoughts. _They'd sure as hell _better_ have Sunny in the next movie._ His lack of appearance with Sideswipe was a _serious_ piss off to me and millions of other fans. _Everyone whose anyone knows they're practically joined at the hip. To have one without the other? And people were already out for Bay blood after Jazz's cruel death._

Seeing the market district pull up, I hit the button to request my stop, and nudged my way past the other people crowding the bus. When the bus stopped and the door opened, I stepped out and began walking. I passed by flower booths, barely glancing at them. I spotted a familiar black t-shirt in a store window, with Optimus Prime printed across the front, in battle stance and with his battle mask engaged.

It didn't phase me. I was picky about what merchandise I went for. Like my Autobot tattoo, and my fake shard of the Allspark that I always wore. Mom got that for me two years ago, at a Comic-con where they had special give aways and sold neat little trinkets to advertise for the newly released movie. Then there were my little Bumblebee studs I wore in my ears, that resemble the 'Bee-otch' air freshener that was shown hanging in Bumblebee in the first movie.

Instead, I entered a massive mall and began wandering about. I took the escalator up to the second floor and made my way to a particular store. "Missy?" I spotted her alone, chewing her gum idly as she sat reading a magazine. "Slow day?" With a smile, I walked over and returned her wave. "I heard my order is in?"

She nodded and dug around under the counter. "Yeah, I heard about that. A custom order?" She smirked a little and raised an eyebrow as she handed me the box. "And I thought I'd seen it all. Damn, you're really hardcore."

"Well, that depends on your definition of hardcore." The smirk that crossed my face probably showed the dirty thoughts rolling around in my head. I grabbed up the box eagerly and examined the picture. "Oh my Primus, this is perfect! They really look like this in the eyes?" Again, Missy nodded, tossing a lock of her blonde hair over her shoulder, and I giggled, before pulling out the cash. "I don't want to try them on just yet. I'm gonna save them." I felt like I was on cloud nine, as I carefully put the box into my purse, and took my change. "Thanks Mis."

Missy Winebacker was the assistant of the actual store owner, whose name I couldn't even spell, let alone pronounce. She was a young girl, just hitting legal age to work, and despite having an almost...cheerleader, haughty look about her at times, she was surprisingly easy to get along with. She helped me out when I first came to the store, interested in getting custom made contacts to resemble an Autobot's optics as closely as possible, and she was all too eager to help.

It cost a good portion of my money, and I had to delve into savings it will take me months to put back, but in the end it felt worth it. I was now the owner, quite possibly one of _very_ few people who had them, of a pair of Autobot optic contact lenses, and I couldn't _wait_ for the perfect opportunity to wear them.

Preferably when there were other Trans-fans around to witness it.

Heading out, I began to debate on what to do next. I was out and about, but all my friends had plans. I'd gotten my contacts, and if I was honest, I _really_ didn't have the money for much else. I had to spend wisely. At least, I was _supposed_ to spend wisely.

So with a new smile, I headed back out of the mall, and through the market district. Pausing in front of the store with the Optimus shirt, I bit my lip. I couldn't _really_ afford it, but I could look, right? I headed in, and straight for the novelty shirts. _Ahh, what the hell. If something catches my eye..._ Grinning, I flipped through the shirts. There were different bots, with cute little sayings under each.

One caught my eye, and I had to slap a hand over my mouth to keep from laughing. The urge hit me so hard, I had tears forming in my eyes, and I once again began to recalculate the money I had left, and what treat I'd have to cut for the month if I wanted to spend it.

It was a cute little image. The Autobot insignia was large, taking up the entire back of the shirt, but it was the background. In the center of it was a canary yellow 2007 Camaro, sans black racing stripes. The front was a close up of Starscream's face with the Decepticon symbol in the background. Doesn't sound cute at all? Then imagine the saying below. _'Starscream. Scaring the stripes off Bumblebee since 2007!'_

And no, it wasn't referring to the dangerous battle-ready, insane bot. Just...well...his face.

I found one in my size and held the shirt aside, flipping a while longer. Three shirts later, and I was ready to sigh in relief, thinking this would be the only shirt to catch my attention. Then I spotted another. This one was a little more common, but no less cute. It was a large Autobot insignia with equally as large, thick rimmed glasses and a bushy moustache, with the attached saying _'Robots in Disguise'._

I pulled one out in my size and then stood there, eyes darting back and forth. They were admittedly cheap, and by no means was I _poor_, but I also wasn't rich. It took me several minutes to finally decide...screw it. Taking them to the counter, I pulled out the cash and paid for them, before taking the bag and my change. _No burgers for me. Meh, I needed to lose weight anyways._ I actually talked one of the workers into letting me borrow their bathroom, and then giggled -Yes, I actually _giggled_- as I slipped into the 'Robots in Disguise' shirt. Next, I opened the box of contacts and slipped a pair in.

So much for waiting, but this was as good a moment as any. It wasn't like a lot of my closer friends were interested in Transformers, surprisingly.

They burned like hell at first, until my eyes got used to them, and I grinned broadly at the mirror. "Oh jeez! Rika would _love_ these!" Not that she was a huge Transformers fan, but... The detail was amazing! They looked like miniature Autobot optics inside my eyes, and were _such_ a bright blue, they looked like they glowed! I stared at them for what felt like forever, until there was a knock on the door, and I startled. "Oh, sorry!" Gathering my things, I quickly tossed them back into the bag and purse, and headed out of the bathroom.

I got more than one odd look as I wandered through the store. I guess most people usually didn't change right after buying their clothes here. With a mental shrug, I made my way back out of the store, to the bus stop. The occasional person stopped, commenting on my contacts, and I loved that every last one of them knew what they were.

"Nice work. How much were they?" One girl was so close, we could have kissed, as she examined my eyes. "Wow, I never even thought of this! I didn't know they made custom lenses. Do they actually _glow_?"

The fandom always amazed me, just how many people adored the Transformers movies. In honesty, Bay did amazing, bringing the mangas and cartoons to life. The only qualms I had were Jazz's untimely and unfair death, and the lack of Sunstreaker at Sideswipe's side. Oh, and...his color change bothered me a _little_, but it wasn't something I'd outright bitch about. Not like the others. Hell, it didn't even really bother me that the twins were originally Lamborghinis and not Corvettes! they were sexy either way!

Well...not the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Convertible Concept form Sides was apparently taking in the next move. Nice car, but _so_ not sexy! Especially for Sides. It just wasn't sleek. Not like the other 'Vette. And Sides is Sides, he _has_ to be sleek!

I felt... I felt like I was on cloud nine all day. No work, it was a beautiful day, and since all my friends were busy and I was pretty much broke now, I was going to spend it doing something I loved. I was going to go home, and look up Transformers fanfictions, and I hoped and prayed some of my favorites would be updated. I could sit back with a bowl of ice cream, read some stories, maybe listen to some music later, and go for a jog once the sun has gone down a little, letting the day cool off.

As the bus arrived, I grabbed a back window seat. The streets were teaming with cars. Mazdas zoomed by, Hondas and Hundais competed for attention, and the occasional cute little Chevy would pop into view, but there was nothing outlandishly fantastic about any of them. A couple older Rolls Royces and Thunderbirds roamed by here and there, perhaps the oddest and coolest of all the cars I saw. Still not picture-worthy in my opinion.

At a set of lights, however, that all changed.

The bus pulled to a stop, and I idly glanced out the window. I wasn't looking for anything in particular, I was just glancing around to bide my time until my stop. We were nearing my stop, it was only a few minutes away, and I was anxious to get home. That is...until my eyes were caught by a flash of bright yellow. It might not have caught my attention, except the car the paint came on was one that had heads literally turning it's way, all up and down the street. Even the cars parked around it or driving past it, the drivers and passengers were so busy staring at it, they missed their stop...or change of light, as it were.

Honks sounded, and people skidded into gear, sounding even more honks. Cars jolted as driver's whipped their heads around and nearly took off not to miss the light, and even the bus jolted as a car cut in front of it.

It was chaos for a split second, but my eyes turned back to the car, like they were magnetically drawn to it. It wasn't driving, like the others. It was parked on the side of the road, and from what I could tell it was an expensive model. Squinting, I tried to make out the details. The Ferrari symbol on the front was the first thing my eyes were attracted to. My heart skipped a beat as I took in the amazing work and detail, and then I noticed the young blonde man sitting on the hood, practically glowering at people who dared venture too close.

_I'd be glaring too, if I had a beauty like that and someone dared touch it with greasy fingers!_ For a moment, I wanted to burst out laughing. I couldn't stop the small giggle, or even the smile. "Oh Primus, I'm channeling Sunstreaker!" My voice was kept low, and my eyes glued to the car as we began to pass. Then it hit me, that was a Ferrari! I couldn't make out the model, but my jaw positively _dropped_, seeing it. _Isn't Sunstreaker supposed to be a Ferrari in the third movie?_

Well..._technically_ there wasn't any finalized details that I knew of. Only rumors there'd be a yellow or red Ferrari, and intuition that really...only one bot would be a yellow _Ferrari_ of all things. No Decepticon would go for it, it drew too much attention and wouldn't do as much damage as say...a tank. Not to mention, yellow really wasn't their color. Most Autobots wouldn't go for it, as it was too flashy. So really, to me, there was only _one_ bot who could _possibly_ be a Ferrari.

Okay, okay... _Two_, but one was already taken and a gorgeous, sleek, 2009 Chevy Corvette Stingray Concept.

"Shit!" Biting my lip, I thanked God I kept my voice low, and looked around to make sure there weren't any kids _too_ close. Digging through my purse as fast as I could, I mentally -for the first time ever- thanked God for creating traffic jams and rush hour. Grabbing my small cell phone, I quickly flipped it open and activated the camera. Then I pointed and began shooting. _Why didn't I bring my other camera? Stupid Bella! Stupid! Stupid!_

"Holy sweet Jesus, look at that thing!" Someone behind me murmured suddenly.

"Isn't that a Ferrari? I've never seen one in Tranquility before." A low whistle. "What a thing of beauty!"

_And Sunny would thank you for saying such a thing._ With a smirk, I struggled to remember how to zoom up, fiddling with the camera. My eyes caught that of the young man sitting on the car hood, and I realized... He was really cute. He was a bright yellow blonde, wearing a yellow shirt and beige cargo pants, and not once did he stop glaring. Only this time he was glaring at the bus, and all the people taking pictures. I took another picture and he turned away, as if we weren't worth looking at, staring around him like he was waiting for someone.

I didn't have much of a chance to question who he could be waiting for, however.

There was suddenly a loud honk. It sounded ear splitting, and way too close for comfort. The bus was halfway across the intersection by now, but as I turned, I could see a semi approaching. And no, not an Optimus semi that caught the eye. Just a _really_ big truck, heading for us _really_ quickly, and not hitting the breaks. The last thing I remembered was massive pain, screams, and the sickening sound of metal on metal.

Then my world went painfully dark.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Pain._

_It sucks big hairy Decepticon knockers._

_It feels like Destructor...or was it Devastator? Why can't I ever get his name right? Anyways, it feels like that big ass combination Decepticon from Egypt tried to punt me back to Cybertron. Multiple times. Before dribbling me like a basket ball. I think everything hurts. I don't really...remember a lot from the accident. The police came to question me, acting all weird about it._

_They probably saw that same damn Ferrari and let themselves get distracted. That's police for you. No offence._

_All I really remember is feeling sore. Hot and cold, and a little tingly. Things kept going black and white on me. I'm not sure if I was conscious or not. I remember...voices, feeling like I was moving. But not _being_ moved. Just... I felt like...even though I was laying on what felt like the ground, I was falling at the same time. There was this loud whirring whooshing, and an almost electrical jolt ran through me._

_It hurt like hell! Probably a lose cable from the bus or something. I remember thinking someone should move that cable. It hurt like hell when it kept zapping me. Each one hurt more and more until, despite my pain and weakness, I couldn't help but scream. I remember this because my throat erupted in pain the moment I did, which only made everything even _worse_._

_But that's the best I can describe it. That's what I remember._

_Then I woke up in the hospital. The beeping and sanitary smell were how I knew. I couldn't even open my eyes. They actually had to remove the contacts in surgery, I found out a little later, before they damaged my eyes, and one of my eyes is still swollen shut. Just a bad bruise, but still... They said I have two cracked ribs, a nasty concussion, a bunch of cuts and bruises; I was lucky to be alive, and should probably stay off my feet for a while._

_No shit sherlock. Nah, I thought I'd go run a marathon after this! I feel fan-fragging-tastic!_

_Note the sarcasm?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Note** : The car model I'm looking up is the 2008 Ferrari 599 GTO. ;) Check it out if you like, just look to the red Ferraris that come up, to get the car I'm working with. I'm just going by a rumor I heard, that the next movie would be involving a cute little Ferrari. XD And yeah, I only just realized it's a Ferrari 458 Italia in the next movie, and it's red. LOL

Due to popular demand, here's the first chapter. Sorry if the title sucks, I'm kinda brain dead at the moment, as far as titles are concerned.

**Written** : June 21, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	2. The Aftermath

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Ow, ow, and mega freakin' ow!_

_Three days after the accident, and nothing is going right! I think the only thing keeping me from launching myself off the roof of the building, though I'd have to find my way up there first, and I am in too much pain to do so... Uh, the only thing keeping me from doing something mega stupid was my stories. See, after years of reading them, and with all this spare time, I suddenly had the urge to write. Well, I had the muse to write before, but it was mostly just smaller stories. That Ferrari, however, awakened a new muse. _

_It wasn't anything big, though. Just the forming outline for a story about Sunstreaker's travel through Tranquility and his observations about Earth._

_I hadn't read any stories since the day before the accident. I've been too preoccupied with dealing with police as stupid as notepads in a computerized age. Lets add to that mind numbing pain that has me trying to sleep away the days, and the urge to write now and then. Oh, and let's not forget concerned family phone calls! If Rika makes one more threat to come up and take care of me herself, I swear..._

_You see, her idea of 'taking care of me' is sticking a full bottle of pain meds next to my bed, a full bottle of water -Sat right in the sun, I might add- on the dresser next to it, and then plopping herself down in front of my tv and helping herself to my food._

_If she wasn't such a great friend, I might just send her a bill for it, too._

_Anyways, I think, after _all_ of this, my biggest pet peeve are those damn cops. They keep asking me the weirdest freakin' questions, and worse than that, they're asking about a crash that didn't even _exist_!_

_Of all the stupid..._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Three days later)**

"Miss Cameron, please calm down."

"Mister Foster, please get a brain." I snorted, rolling my eyes. Well, _eye_, at the moment. Folding my arms painfully over my chest, I leveled the young officer a dirty look. "Do they even _take_ IQ tests at the academy, or just pass every chimp that can fire a gun?" He shot me a dirty look of his own and opened his mouth. "For the last freakin' time, I. Don't. Know! I wasn't there! You've got the wrong accident!"

He sighed and shook his head. "Can I ask what medication you're taking for the pain?" His eyes were on a digitalized note pad before him, so I guess he missed the rather smoky glare I was giving him from my one good eye, because when he glanced up again, he looked startled and _actually_ stepped back.

"Are you actually considering inferring that I'm stoned?" My voice was low, but I was _seething_. Rika stood in the background, staring at us with wide eyes. Catching my glance, she shrugged and stepped back herself. I transferred my gaze back to the officer before me. "I think I'd damn well know what accident I was in! My memory _during_ the accident is blurry! Not before it! We were passing Middleton Street and Brochester Avenue. There was a huge ass ruckus about some Ferrari parked on the side of the freakin' rode!" I know snapping at a policeman was dangerous, but I was past my boiling point.

I woke up at five am in pain. In _agony._ Even after the meds, it took me a couple of hours to fall asleep, and then only to be woken up by knocking at my door at nine! I've been _trying_ to answer this frustrating bastard's questions ever since! And most of them he was asking over and over again in different wordings, as if trying to worm some secret answer out of me by catching me off guard.

He sighed again, frowning, and tapping his hand against the edge of the pad he carried. "Miss Cameron, I understand you're confused-"

"Pissed is more like it." Growling, I unfolded my arms when a bruise on my shoulder began to pull painfully. Hissing, I rubbed at the area gingerly. The pain medication had long since worn off, but he kept me here with questions. "Confused would be you, apparently. You don't seem to understand the English. You know, common language about seventy five percent of the human population knows how to speak?"

"If you don't calm down, I'll have to take you in."

Rolling my eyes, I turned away, sinking my teeth into my lip to control the urge to speak the words flooding my mind. _Heaven forbid! Your dispatcher's probably an ape more interested by what he picks out of his own back hair than accident victims._ I was generally a nice girl. At least, I liked to pride myself on being one. I was kind, helped out elderly or disabled if I could in any way. I wasn't nasty to beggars and homeless people, but right now... Right now I felt like taking that gun, and shoving it so far up his ass, he'd be literally eating bullets.

"You were listed as being picked up from a bus that was destroyed during a terrorist attack on the One-Five. There _was_ no accident reports on Middleton and Brochester." Once again he tapped the pad. "We have digital photos of multiple people on the scene, before we managed to get to them, retrieved by bystanders, that can proove it."

"So you're saying somehow I went from being in the middle of the town, to way outside city limits in a matter of seconds." Once again my voice went quiet, and my eyes caught my own phone. It must have dropped into my purse again at the time of the accident. There was no damage on it, but there _were_ familiar shots of a gorgeous yellow Ferrari. Reaching over, I gasped, as my side pulled.

"Miss-"

I shot him a glare, even as he stepped forward. "I'm not a hostile, violent woman, but I am _so_ pissed off with you right now, if you come any closer, I can't be held accountable for my reaction. I suggest you keep your hands to yourself." Then I softened a little, breathing out slowly and gritting my teeth as I brought the camera close to me. "Look, I know you're trying to do your job, but you want the jist of it? I don't remember ever being on a highway outside the city." I looked down and began flipping through my pictures, and held one up. "I _do_ remember the cute little Ferrari parked on the side of the road, _right_ before the accident, however." And luckily, the photos were time stamped, so he could check to confirm.

Don't get me wrong, the whole 'terrorist' mention didn't pass me by at all. In fact, the first time he mentioned it, I freaked out, asking about a million questions about the semi that hit us, thinking it might have been a transport for...well...bombs and stuff. He just gave me a funny look and asked 'What transport?'. Yeah, like a truck would get away without a scratch after hitting a freakin' _bus_ of all things!

I'm injured, not stupid.

He stared at the shot, blinking. Then he frowned. He really wasn't all _that_ bad looking a boy. Clearly just out of college with reddish blonde hair and deep brown eyes, bordering on hazel. Nodding, he began typing on his little note pad. "Alright, I'll look into it. For reference, I have the number?" I nodded and he nodded back, typing a bit more. Adjusting the hat he wore, he looked up again, almost hesitating. You know, part of the 'strange' behaviour I mentioned earlier. Or maybe I really _did_ scare him. That'd be a first!

"Um, ok. So, I need to ask... You said you were hit by a semi?"

"If it got away from the scene of the crime unscathed, I'm willing to pay good money for a Wolverine transplant." I deadpanned. "It was just a normal semi. I guess the Ferrari threw off traffic so much, it just didn't have time to stop." I shrugged, wondering what was going on.

"There wasn't a semi at the accident."

I nodded, raising an eyebrow. "And which accident would that be again? Mine or yours?" He blinked at me. "Say what you want, I just gave you proof of what I said. Check the time stamp. I was at Middleton and Brochester. You either have the wrong girl, or heard the wrong information." I wasn't being rude now. It felt like the anger had more or less drained out of me. No now I was just tired. Tired and sore as hell.

With a shake of his head, he pressed a couple of buttons and turned his data pad around. "I'm really not authorized to be showing these freely but..." The image changed to a scene of horrible destruction.

It took me moments to realize I was staring at the back end of a bus. My eyes widened and my jaw dropped in horror as I made out human bodies, and what I could only guess were _parts_ of human bodies strewn around. There were a few people standing or crawling however. Then the image changed, and I realized I was staring at the front end. The front windshield was painted red with blood, cracked, with half a human body sticking out of it. There were more bodies strewn here, too.

I think the first thing I noticed was...these pictures weren't taken in town. There were no buildings, just lots of sky, which would support his theory. The picture changed again, a closeup of the wreckage and victims. Then I noticed the shirt. The dusty shirt with the Autobot insignia on the front, half obscured but still recognizeable to my eyes. For an instant, it was like time froze. I stared...at myself. I was barely conscious, curled up, battered and bleeding.

"That's impossible." I couldn't explain it though. My cell phone prooved I was no where near the One-Five, but these pictures said I was. I guess...his pictures could have been doctored, but...why would a policeman lie about something like that? What reason could anyone have to put me at an accident I wasn't at? I mean, there was absolutely _no_ doubt in my mind that I was at Middleton and Brochester. I knew it. I believed it. Screw what anyone else said. But...these pictures said I wasn't.

Was it possible there was an accident at both places? Maybe two different precints just picked up each report? I could have just been dazed and gotten on another bus without realizing it...

But no. No.

I was there.

I was...at both accidents.

But...that wasn't possible.

With a frown, I leaned back in my chair. "If it wasn't a semi-" And trust me, I didn't believe for a moment that there wasn't. I _know_ what I saw. I _know_ what I heard, and I damned well knew what I _felt_. "Then what hit the bus?"

"Uh, well...we're not sure." Now he looked really confused. Scratching at the back of his head, he gave an odd little chuckle. "You wouldn't believe the reports we got on our end, from witnesses." He shook his head. "Like I said though, it was apparently a terrorist attack with some hallucinogen involved."

Yeah, that excuse wasn't...stupid at all. I barely resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Pain or no pain, I felt like I was getting control of myself again, and didn't want to lose that. I did, however, smirk. "Let me guess, they saw a big ass robot skidding down the street, and it cut the bus in half?" That scene from the movie was definitely cool, except for the 'innocent victims'.

Startling, he blinked at me, before gaping a moment. "Uh... Uh... Yeah, actually."

Now I did roll my eyes, and my smirk grew. "Ah yes, the beloved attack scene." Seeing his clueless look, I shook my head and rubbed at my chest, grasping lightly at my fake Allspark shard. "It's a scene from a _really_ popular movie. A large, uh, machine-" I didn't remember exactly what piece of construction machinery it was. "-turned into a big robot that rolled down the highway, throwing cars all over the place and cutting a bus in half."

"It's a movie scene?" He raised an eyebrow. I nodded. "Well damn! Finally, it makes sense!" Shaking his head, he began typing on the pad again. "I can't believe, with an accident _that_ bad, that everyone was blabbing about giant robots. Jeez, what's with our world?"

"Well, to be fair, it was a _really_ good movie." I couldn't help the small laugh, and groaned as my ribs pulled. My head was beginning to throb, and I was about to excuse myself to take my meds when Rika wandered in and popped two pills in my hand. Catching his look, I raised an eyebrow. "Advil. Morphine gives me hives." I took the pills. "Thanks Ri."

"No problem, girl. You should be resting."

I interrupted her dirty look at the cop, with a shake of my head. "Nah, I wanna get this sorted."

Officer Foster nodded in agreement, and shifted ever so slightly. "If the movie's so popular, why don't I remember any movie with a scene with giant robots on a highway?"

"It's Transformers." I admitted. "A movie about a race of giant intergalactic space robots." Grinning a little, I shook my head and leaned back in the chair. "They were survivors of a war on their home planet Cybertron, and came to Earth because millenia ago, they cast a powerful item out into space to help protect it. They traced it's energy signal to our home planet. The good guys, the Autobots, came to protect Earth and human kind from danger, and to retrieve their item, the Allspark."

The look on his face was completely enraptured as he listened.

"There were five of them at the time. Their leader, Optimus Prime, took an alternate form, a disguise of sorts, of a large blue and red flame decal semi cab. That's how they hide, they disguise themselves as fancy cars. Or in the case of a lot of Decepticons, construction machinery, planes and jets." I shrugged and hissed as pain lanced up my arm. "Ow. That's why my fascination with the Ferrari. The third Transformers movie was rumored to have a yellow Ferrari as one of the bots." _Or...was it red? Why can I never remember?_

"But why was it in Tranquility?"

"Oh right! Well, the movie was set in and around Tranquility. The main battle took place in Mission city, and was later covered up with a 'terrorist attack' story." I raised an eyebrow as he gave me a funny look, almost stiffening. "They blamed the rumors of giant alien robots duking it out as a mass hallucination, though that's a half assed excuse if I ever heard one. How the hell could they possibly explain away thousands of people with no connection to each other, across a massive city, _all_ having the same hallucination?" Shaking my head, I smiled a little. "But the homes of Autobot allies, _human_ Autobot allies, were set in Tranquility."

"So they have human friends?"

I nodded my head. "Well one took up a hidden position as one boy's guardian at first, at the beginning of the movie. The kid had no idea his car was really a giant alien robot. Then another kid got involved when she was abducted to protect her..." I trailed off, and barely resisted the urge to shrug again. _Huh, I shouldn't call them kids. They're probably only a year or two younger than me, anyways._

"You said the good guys. I take it there are bad guys?" There was an oddly shaken sound to the officer's voice, but his expression was only slightly freaked.

"The Decepticons. The first one we're introduced to is really Barricade. He disguises himself as a patrol car, a Saleen Mustang with the words 'To Punish and Enslave' written on the hind quarter." I didn't miss how he glanced briefly outside at his own cruiser, but tried not to grin. His unit number was 318, not 643 and it didn't have the logo on it. "Their leader is Megatron, who was kept at the Hoover Dam base, under deep freeze." I shook my head. "It's probably better if you just go to the store and buy a copy. It'd be easier to watch than to hear me explaining it. And a lot more fun." My gaze turned to my own tv, as I thought about having a Transformers night in.

"Alright. I'll definitely keep that in mind. I should get in and file my reports, before it gets too late. The precint is in a chaotic mess right now, as well." Shaking his head, he gave me a funny look, before sighing. "This has definitely been an...enlightening visit. I'll look into that Ferrari, and any reports of a severely damaged semi anywhere. Thank you for taking the time to talk to me, and _thank you_ for calming down." He gave me an honestly grateful look. "I haven't been on the job long. I'll admit I can be a little head strong, but I was just going by the information I was given."

I shook my own head, already feeling the medication kicking in as the pain dulled ever so slightly. "It's alright. I know how it can be. I don't think I would have been so easily annoyed if my pain medication didn't wear off." Giving a small smile, I rubbed at my ribs a little. "And I hope I helped clear things up."

"You did. A movie reference." He groaned a little. "Now we need to go back and re-examine all the witness statements. Great. Well, at least we'll get to the bottom of this. Thanks again." He nodded and shook my hand, before heading out.

Rika then turned to me. "Transformers? Seriously?"

Walking over, I painfully crouched down next to the DVD player, and grabbed the case, showing it to her. Then I dug around and pulled the second one out. "See? I know you were never all that into car movies, but this one is kick ass. Not to mention, it's got a sexy little Corvette in it." I raised an eyebrow as her eyes took on a certain little gleam. "Interested in a movie night?"

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Forget the pain. Today just sucked!_

_First the stubborn cop. Ok, I couldn't blame him, with everything going on. I just felt nasty and took it out on him. But _this_? This of all possible things? When it comes to fangirls, there are very specific things you just do _not_ mess with. Merchandise, fanfictions, you _certainly_ don't insult the movie or game, or whatever, in front of them, and above all else, you do _not _-and I can't stress this enough- mess with their copies of the DVDs._

_I worked for hours, trying to get the damn thing to work, before I finally just gave up. Hell, I admit I even let out a frustrated growl, and just...curled up there, glaring at my DVDs. Everything else worked just fine. I've _never_ had issues with it before. Why now? Why only my Transformers DVD?_

_Did I somehow piss God off and not even know it? Or was this just the worst possible day in history?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : July 21, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	3. The Questions

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I got a note from someone saying they liked the story, but weren't a big fan of swearing. Honestly? Neither am I. I found the foul language in my other stories a bit sharp for my liking. There is the occasional foul word in this one, but most of the swearing is going to be Cybertronian. Just letting everyone know, if anyone else is bothered by foul language.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_If I thought things would get better, I was only marginally right. I dropped off my DVDs at my step-brother's, so he could take a look at them. He was a professional hacker whom I admittedly only had partial contact with, but if anyone could figure out what was wrong with them, he would. Then I relaxed for the night. This morning was a _little _better. _

_My pain is still there, obviously, and a royal pain in the ass, but on the upside, my eye healed a little. It was still red, and my vision blurry, but I could open it and look out of it. For now, however, I would stick to sunglasses._

_After all, there's only so many 'sight for sore eyes' comments a girl can take, before she goes utterly batty._

_Another upside is that the police and recovery crew finally finished with the 'crime scene'. Officer Foster returned later yesterday to get my statement once again, and only confirm that the two stories weren't lining up, and he was going to look into it. Then, right before I decided to crash, another officer stopped off, handing me an all too familiar bag. I have my things back! Yay!_

_So, at least things were looking...a little better._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Next day)**

"Wow, these are cute!" Rika held up the one shirt and giggled. "Bumblebee? That's the...cute one?"

Apparently the police office or government or whatever had seen to repair or replace things lost in the crash. For me, it was just a shirt. They wanted anything they could get off me, that I'd been wearing at the accident. Apparently, they wanted to run all kinds of test on them, looking for any transfers, and useless crap I didn't care enough about to listen to. It was my shirt, just a piece of cloth, really, but I bitched and moaned enough that _someone_ did_ something_ to get it back to me, just to shut me up.

I feel proud!

I told her whatever I could of the movie after I dropped the DVDs off, and we ended up in such detailed conversation, she stayed over because it was too late for her to go home by the time we were finished. Like I said, she'd never been a big fan of the show, and I'd only mentioned it in passing. Now she was taking a seemingly honest interest in it, and I was all too happy to divulge information. Now we sat at my place for the lack of anything to do. I had an entire week off because of my injuries, paid leave thankfully. I was a babysitter, in spare time, but usually worked as a secretary for a computer company. You know, whatever little odd jobs I could get, to pay the bills. My boss was really kind, and all things considered, I was beyond lucky that I had _paid_ leave.

And considering all of Tranquility was apparently a chaotic mess, neither Rika or I knew why, shopping or even hanging out in the city was off-limits. So that meant a nice, hopefully relaxing, day at home. "Bumblebee was, at the time, the youngest one and their scout. Most people who knew him though, would say he's a cutie. He can't... Well, he _can_ speak a little, though it's painful and a lot of people think Ratchet gives him crap about it because his throat was damaged in the war and is still recovering." I kept my explanation vague, knowing details on _how_ his throat was damaged were still pretty sketchy. I explained who Ratchet was, and about his attitude, before struggling to explain in detail Bumblebee's appearance.

"Ahh." She nodded. Shuffling between the shirts, she handed me the Bumblebee one to wear -She wanted me to dress up a little- and put the other back in the bag. Getting the shirt on was incredibly difficult and painful. "That movie sounds kinda cool. I hope your brother can get them working again." Next she began brushing my hair, and I could only sigh. If there was one thing I loved, it was someone playing with my hair. It was such a soothing feeling, especially when Rika did it. She was gentle about it. "What do you think could have caused _both_ movies to suddenly act up?"

I'd learned over the course of yesterday that shrugging was bad, when you were hurt, so I just hummed my lack of knowledge. "I dunno. I mean, I've never had any issues before. It's _so_ annoying!" The small growl that escaped me ended up in a purr as she pulled lightly at my hair. Her giggle made me grimace, and I absently reached up and flipped her the bird. "Screw off!" Her giggle only grew.

"Well, we don't have much else to do. You've made me sit through Twilight I don't know how many times now, and I've seen everything else you've got. Want to go see your brother about the movies?" She pulled my hair back and braided it, before pulling away. She brushed her blonde hair over her shoulder, and sat on the couch, grabbing her bottle of water and taking a drink.

I thought about it a moment, before nodding. "Yeah, sure. Nothing else to do, and I'd _really_ like to know what's up." I grabbed my shoes from the door and and painfully slowly slipped them on. I cursed a little as my arm and ribs pulled uncomfortably. Even with painkillers it was bad enough. I adjusted the new shirt awkwardly. Part of me wanted to change into something bigger and baggier, except that I didn't think I'd be able to handle the pain of taking this one off and getting another on. Once my shoes were laced, damn sneakers, I grabbed my purse and keys. "Hopefully this time there _won't_ be any stupid Ferrari."

Rika looked like she wanted to laugh again, but was holding it back, and shook her head. "Oh come on. Near fatal accident or not, you can't tell me you wouldn't go gaga over seeing a sexy car like that. Did you ever google the model?"

"I googled the car and ended up in a near fatal accident. No thanks." I sighed, and she laughed. Catching what she meant, though, I shook my head and she shrugged.

"Ok, well you can do that later. C'mon, let's go see your bro."

The walk to the bus stop was slow. I had a whole day ahead of me, so there was no real reason to hurry, and I was admittedly nervous about stepping on a bus again, even if this one would take an entirely different route out of the city. See, my step-brother Jeff lived over near Mission City itself, just on the very outskirts in a quiet little neighborhood. That would mean for a long bus ride, and about three bus transfers to get there.

_I so don't want to do this._ I spotted a bus going by and inhaled sharply. I watched the colors on the bus, not the least bit damaged and watched as it drove down the street. It was almost speeding, but that could have been my imagination. "I don't know if..." I shuddered a little and hissed in pain, pressing my hand lightly over my aching ribs. My mind flashed to the horn of the semi, the sudden jerking, the screams, and the pain, and I stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. "I can't take a bus."

"Bella." Rika's hand was on my shoulder, and her concerned face appeared in my view.

I shook my head. "I _just_ came out of an accident on a bus! I can't just..." Swallowing heavily, I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. I'd gotten a ride to Jeff's last night with another friend, but she'd be at work right now. I didn't..._have_ to go see Jeff, but what about when it came time for work? There was no way I'd make it walking the entire way. Daily. I knew I'd eventually have to get back on a bus, but it just seemed so fast!

She knew me well. Her eyes were dark, making the normally bright green seem more like a forest green, and she nodded. "Do you want to go back? I think you should give it a try, but I won't force you. These things, I mean, I've never experienced it first hand, but it seems kinda...traumatic."

"No duh." I laughed shakily. "Nah, these things happen to me all the time. I'm good!" I rolled my eyes at her, before sighing. My heart felt like it was a jackhammer inside my chest, aggravating my injured ribs, and my head was spinning, but I stepped forward. "I..." My voice shook, along with my body. I just knew, if I didn't do this, if I didn't push myself, I'd never get back to it. "God, I hurt, and I'm not sure I can do this, but...but I can...try."

I knew it was only a matter of time. The only way to move past it was to try, right?

"Alright." She seemed to ignored my sarcasm, for once, and walked next to me, all the way to the bus stop, where we waited for the right bus. "Let's try."

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

Officer Foster sat at his desk frowning. He compared photos in front of him taken from the crime scene and Isabella's phone. Things just didn't add up, and he couldn't shake the feeling. The story the young woman told him brought several things to his mind. He'd heard the calls, about 'giant robots' fighting in Mission City. He'd heard the reports about the giant robot that destroyed the bus, and knew they were lucky to find _any_ survivors, considering the wreckage left behind.

There were _so_ many questions rolling around in his mind. The story Bella told him didn't seem real, but with all the actual reports he'd heard, and the mass destruction... Pulling his laptop out of his bag and sitting it on his lap before him, he opened it and booted it up, waiting a couple minutes for it to connect. In the meantime, he glanced again at the pictures.

Cell phone photos were almost impossible to fake, especially when they were still on the phone. She didn't strike Foster as the type of person to be a mechanical mastermind, either. Smart yes, a total computer genius, maybe not. These photos were time stamped, reading as taken only minutes before the accident, but upon closer inspection, they were indeed taken around Middleton and Brochester. Then again, the witness photos clearly showed her at the scene of the crime minutes outside the city entrance, just before the turnoff to Mission City. How was that possible?

Opening a web page, he began to Google 'Transformers'. He'd never heard of the movie before, and he was really a movie buff. Not to mention, once again, he felt like something was really off. Strangely, he looked it up on movie sites, and there was no mention. When he randomly Googled it, they brought up every type of electronic Transformer, but nothing else.

Instead, he Googled 'Giant Alien Robots', and it brought up images of robots fighting in Mission City. His eyes widened then. There were titles that involved the terrorist attacks and possible cover ups.

"What's going on?" He frowned, doing more research. He typed up 'Cybertron' although he had to type it a few different ways for spelling, not having anything to go by, but got nothing. 'Autobots' and 'Decepticons' was the same thing. He wasn't sure whether or not to go back to Isabella and question her or what. Then, suddenly, his computer screen flickered. Jolting slightly, he blinked and tapped his screen lightly, only for it to flicker again. "What the...?"

Just as suddenly as the image began to flicker, there was a click, and the screen went blank.

"Oh, come on!" He smacked the screen lightly. "Well _damn_!" he leaned back in his seat and let out a deep sigh. "This is just _not_ my day!" With a grumble, he shut down his computer and put it back in his bag, before picking up his phone and dialing Isabella's home number. If nothing else, maybe she could answer some more questions. She really didn't seem to know, let alone understand, what happened with the accident, but she knew things she couldn't know, and he was beginning to wonder about the validity of her claims of a popular movie. Maybe... Maybe she could lend him her copy of the movie.

If her gaze was anything to go by, she had a copy.

Unfortunately, there was no answer. With another sigh, he put the receiver down, and a commotion in the main precint caught his attention. Getting up, he wandered over to the door and looked out, doing a double take. Moving slowly, he wandered out and stood next to another officer as a couple of military men walked in, holding papers. "What's going on?"

"Looks like the military's invading. I heard rumors they're going to different precincts and questioning every officer with any relation to the Mission City terrorist attack. They think some of the officers might have been infected by a hallucinogen released in the city."

"But none of us were there." Jesse took in how beaten the men looked. They were battered and bruised, looking utterly exhausted as they walked, but they moved with a purpose, their expressions alert and grim.

"Yeah, but rumors and stuff spread around. Not to mention, the bus was related to that, and a lot of us _were_ involved with that crime scene. They're probably checking to be safe."

"Great. How are they doing this?"

The other officer shot him a look. "What I heard? They're going to visit us alphabetically and question us about... Well... No one knows _what_ they're going to question us about, but probably stuff relating to the terrorist attack and the accident." Rolling his eyes, the officer moved back to his desk and sat back down. "Good luck with that, Jesse. I also 'heard' you were part of the crew on the crime scene cleanup."

Shaking his head, Jesse Foster turned and walked back into his office, frowning as he sat back down. There was something sitting in his gut that just felt wrong. He adjusted his black shirt, before straightening his pants. Checking to make sure he was decent, he sat back down and began straightening his desk. Part of his job, he preferred to make a good impression. Seeing someone heading towards his office, he moved all the crime scene photos to the edge of the desk and into a folder out of the way.

There was a knock, and he nodded, beckoning the young soldier in.

"Officer Jesse Foster?"

His last name started with an 'F', and out of all the precinct officers, he was at the top of the list alphabetically who was also involved with the bus accident on the One-Five. "Yes?" He stood and shook the young man's hand, noticing immediately that said young soldier was one of the ones covered with cuts and bruises, and looked like he hadn't slept in weeks. "Can I help you?"

"Captain William Lennox. I was appointed as part of a recruitment crew on behalf of the U.S. military by Secretary of Defence, John Keller."

That explanation seemed odd. What did the Secretary of Defence feel the need to get involved with the U.S. military, directly, for? _Just_ a recruitment drive? Then why did this officer _look_ like he just got out of a battle with giant alien robots?

The Captain handed over a folded form. "We need some help cleaning up the Mission City mess and stemming some of the...rumors started because of the hallucinogen." His expression was a hint uncertain, like he wasn't sure of something.

Jesse took the papers and read over them, recognizing the official seal and signature before anything else. "Wait, were you there?" When the Captain nodded, Jesse frowned. "Actually, you're right on time. I've had some questions concerning all this." He paused then, noting immediately that Lennox's eyes darkened with a hint of warning, and his suspicions began to grow more. "I have reason to... I mean, there is a possible reason to think there's more than a terrorist attack." His words were haulting, almost shaky, as he realized he might have been barking up the wrong tree. But as an officer of the law, it was his duty to uncover the truth and get to the bottom of possible dangers.

Lennox sat down and stared at him a long moment, wincing a little as he moved. "It was a terrorist attack." His tone left no room for argument, and his gaze warned off more questions. "It was bombs and a general hallucinagen that was released in the city limits, blanketing the entire city, and spreading beyond. I know what people _said,_ but it wasn't real."

Jesse eyed the photos, his proof _something_ wasn't right, and sighed. "So why is it I met with one girl who knew more than anyone outside of city limits?" The question was meant more for himself, but as the Captain's eyes narrowed, he grabbed the folder, slipping out images of the bus accident and the bodies. This was a military man, covering the incident. If anyone had a right to see the photos, it was him.

"She knew before I mentioned it that there were 'rumors' of a giant robot that hit the bus. She knew about the battle in Mission City and she knew that the terrorist attack was just a cover up. She claimed it all to be the product of an incredibly popular movie known as 'Transformers', that dealt with giant alien robots known as Cybertronians, who came to Earth."

There was no missing how Lennox's eyes widened and his face paled. Even as he quickly masked the look, Jesse felt his own eyes narrow. "This girl, was she _in_ Mission City? We're quarantining everyone to try and stem any possible dangers. If she's wandering out there, she could still be under the effects."

For a moment, Foster paused. "I...don't know." It was also his duty to defer to higher ups, and this man had Sec-Def permission. He was definitely a higher up. With another sigh, he shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I really don't know. You see, she was part of a nasty accident involving a nearly demolished bus." He spread the pictures before the soldier, trying not to be phased by how young the man was.

He had shortly cropped dark ash blonde hair, bordering on an almost darker shade of sandy brown, that was spiked slightly in an almost messily casual fashion, and bright blue eyes. He was older than Jesse, but only by a few years, but he clearly looked a lot older and wiser in the eyes, like he'd been through hell and back. Especially if he'd earned the rank of Captain at his age.

"She claims she wasn't in that bus accident, but as you can clearly see, she was." He pointed to the girl, whose face was mostly obscured by her ponytail. The only way they'd been able to identify her was by her ID in her pockets and the clothing she wore. "She claims she was at another accident, but I've searched the location she gave only to find there _was_ no accident there."

"So she's lying or infected with the hallucinogen."

"I don't think so." Shaking his head, Jesse Foster pulled out the rest of the pictures. They were blown up as large as they could be without blurring them, but the car was still fairly far away and always obscured by other cars passing by in front of it. It was the center of the photo, only because it was so flashy. "These were taken from her cell phone and the time stamp showed it mere minutes before the accident itself. If you'll look here..." He pointed to a street sign. "This is where she _said_ the accident happened, but I visited the location and there was nothing amiss."

Frowning, Lennox took the pictures. "So you're dealing with a girl who claimed to be in an accident she wasn't in, who also claims not to have been in an accident she _was_." His frown deepened. "Man, my head hurts! But what does this have to do with Mission City?"

"She mentioned the Transformers movie. Something about Cybertronians called the 'Autobots' and 'Decepticons' who came to Earth after an ancient power."

"What?" Lennox was standing suddenly, looking alarmed. "Wait, that's not possible. Are you sure?" At Jesse's nod, the Captain grabbed a cell phone from his pocket and dialed a number before bringing the phone to his ear. "It's me. We've got an issue. Possible civilian with more information than she should have. She supposedly knows things she shouldn't, and informed a local officer of them." There was silence a moment. "Are you sure?" He nodded. "Alright." He flipped his phone shut and straightened, collecting the photos in front of him. "I'm afraid I'm going to need you to come with me."

"Excuse me? I have responsibilities here." Jesse stood quickly. "And just what the hell's going on here?"

"I can arrange it that there will be no problems with you coming with me, but I'm not authorized to answer your questions here and now." Lennox stared him down. "Do you want answers, Officer Jesse Foster?" As he nodded, the soldier raised an eyebrow. "Then you will need to come with me, and I'm going to need you to be completely honest with me, as well as any information you have on 'this woman'."

There was a second's hesitation. He _did_ want answers, more than anything, but... What was he getting into? Could he handle it? Would he want to? There was something here, something going on that he was beginning to wonder if he'd survive getting into the middle of it. And Bella... Did he want to give her up? She was just an innocent girl from what he'd seen, who looked honestly confused when she learned the strange instance of the attack. Was it really his place to give her information up.

"Even if you don't cooperate, the military and government officials have all the permission and manpower to hack into your most highly guarded accounts online." Lennox's voice was soft, almost understanding. "It'll be...overwhelming, but even if you don't help us, we still have what it takes to track down your leads. Either way, you _do_ need to come with me. I have authority to arrest anyone who fights me."

Swallowing, Jesse nodded. "I'll come along quietly, but I won't give up my contact. I wouldn't be able to forgive myself for betraying her confidence, especially when I don't even know what _I'm_ getting into."

There was a flash in Lennox's eyes and he nodded, a small smile forming on his lips. "I respect that. I'll talk to my superiors." He held the photos tightly. "Come on, lets go."

The two marched out of the office, the object of more than one curious stare, and out and down the stairs, into a military vehicle. There was a tension about them that spoke volumes however, and quickly attention turned back away again. Jesse Foster couldn't help but be wary as he climbed into the vehicle, which immediately pulled away.

It would be a walk that would change his life forever.

* * *

**Note** : I won't always start and end with a journal entry, it just helps with the storyline. Particularly, I won't always end with a journal entry, if I switch POVs before the chapter is done.

**Written** : July 22, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	4. The Ferrari

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it. Just a little FYI, I just finished reading the lates installment of 'Science and Fiction' by **Faecat**, and noticed in her notes that the term 'carrying' and the 'carrying hold' have been done before. I don't own any mention I make it of in the future. Nor did I own it in my previous fanfiction. Like I said...anything I own, I'll name.

Bella. Rika. Jesse Foster. Sunfire. Twin-song.

Those are all I own. XD Oh, and my Ravage-muse. *Muse grins toothily*

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_What's wrong with this picture?_

_Ok so I saw Jeff and it turns out there was nothing _wrong_ with those DVDs. They were clean. They weren't scratched, and an indepth search showed they hadn't been deleted in any way. They were just...blank. There was nothing on them, and it looked like there never was. I don't know what's really more painful. Knowing Jeff's either high on something and made a mistake, or knowing that only a few days ago, I was on cloud nine and now everything was confusion and pain._

_What's going on with my world?_

_I hit my head, I know, but I didn't _imagine_ Transformers. I didn't imagine the massive fandom, but I was starting to wonder...if there wasn't something bigger at work. The mysterious accident location mixup, the strange DVDs going blank, and the cop's weird behavior..._

_Let's not add to that, that when I finally got home, I checked my phone to see a call from an unknown number. When I called back, it turned out to be the precinct, and I guessed it was Officer Foster, but when I asked for him, I was informed he was not available. I heard the man I was speaking to mention something about him being escorted out of the precinct with a military man._

_Odd just stepped up to _really_ weird._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Next day)**

"Are you sure you didn't just imagine the whole Transformers thing? I mean, I've never heard of it before. No one else seems to have. Your movies don't exist." Rika raised an eyebrow, holding a bottle of water in her grip.

We were sitting at a local park, watching everyone mill around as usual. My eye had finally healed enough to be able to see through it clearly, but I still had some swelling and a nasty bruise. Yeah, not a pretty sight. Huh, no pun intended. I stuck with the sunglasses. My ribs hurt, but not quite as bad, and my head throbbed angrily, probably the worst pain I was in, at the moment. Those were basically the only real injuries still sticking with me. The day was nice though, so I relaxed in the sun, sitting on a towel with a cold bottle of water in my own hand. I tried to ignore the cuts and bruises still coating my arms and legs, despite wearing a short skirt, and a tank top with a button up top hanging half off one arm.

"No, Rika, I didn't _imagine_ it." Frowning, I pulled the collar of my shirt aside, showing her my tattoo. "I got this over a year ago." Then I showed her the necklace and earrings. "I've had these for years. I couldn't have been imagining it. Especially not for _years_." Shaking my head, I sighed and lay back. "None of this makes any sense, and it only keeps getting worse. How does such a massive fandom just...disappear?"

The first thing I did when I got home and returned the call, was to boot up my computer, bitch about the noisy fans, and then hit the fanfiction site, looking for Transformers stories. They'd help sooth me, I thought. Unfortunately...

Nothing.

There was nothing. No Transformers fanfictions. No Transformers sub-category, and when I googled, nothing related to the movie online.

I even plugged in my flash drive, only to find my incomplete fanfiction there. It was like...other than my DVDs, anything I had on me was the same. The rest of the world was what changed, but that just... That just wasn't possible. There was nothing logical or rational about it. So...since that was aboslutely impossible, there had to be another reason, but... What was that?

"Maybe it's all real?" She rolled her eyes, and I snorted on a laugh, grimacing as my ribs pulled at the sound.

"Oh God, don't make me laugh!" Then an idea hit me. It was about as improbable as what she just suggested but was _slightly_ more realistic. "Maybe they're filming the third movie? Or maybe there was a leak." The words seemed to make a lot of sense, and I could have sagged in relief. "That's it! They're removing a lot of merchandise and advertising because there was a leak, I bet!" It didn't really make sense for the third movie, unless it was like Nine Eleven, where they stopped production on all movies containing the Twin Towers.

_Maybe one of the actors died or something, and they're recalling production on things because of it?_

"They removed _all_ merchandise, because of a _leak_?" Rika's face was filled with disbelief. "That seems kinda improbable."

"And it all becoming real isn't?" Opening my bottle, I raised it to my lips. I let my eyes roam around the park, only to freeze cold. "No. Way." I lowered the bottle again, recapping it, my eyes fixed to the distant figure. As quickly as I dared move with my ribs and head, I reached into my purse and grabbed my small digital camera. "Rika! It's the Ferrari again!"

She gave me an odd look, and turned the direction I looked. "And? I know it's a nice car, but there's no reason to be anal about it."

Her words practically flowed over my head as I stared at the Ferrari. If I thought it was beautiful before, it seemed ten times so now. Somehow it looked even newer than before. I leaned forward, feeling my button up over shirt pull, and removed it, leaving me in my tank top. Then I raised my camera, turned it on and took aim. "That's the same damn Ferrari that caused the accident before." Frowning, I felt my eyes narrow. "He can tell Officer Foster about the accident, or at the very least he might be able to tell me what happened. He was there. He'd know." I zoomed in. "He had to at least have seen it!"

"Um, Bells? Doesn't that sound a little...well...too much?" Her voice was hesitant. "I mean, you saw that car once, and now you're insisting the driver can solve all your problems?"

_Not all. _I'd taken a few pictures, but froze at her words. The main thought in my head was...he was there. He probably caused the accident, not on purpose of course, but at the same time, I felt a strange drawing sensation. Like he could make things right, though I didn't know how. At Rika's words, however, it all sank in. I _never_ took this kind of nearly fanatical interest in vehicles, and even if he _was_ there... There hadn't _been_ an accident. Not where I thought, anyways.

"Maybe you didn't imagine Transformers. I mean, there's no way you could afford to get t-shirts printed with anything related to it, and you'd have to explain the idea to someone and it's just too complicated, but that doesn't mean that Ferrari is behind it all. He was a bystander." She was being more serious than I was used to. "So...if you want answers, I have an idea that _doesn't_ involve acting like a stalker of the car. I mean go ahead and get pictures, it's a freakin' hot car, but I'd limit it at that." There was a small laugh. "Unless you were planning to flirt your way into the passenger seat."

"Oh yeah," I rolled my eyes sarcastically. "Excuse me mister, I was wondering if you could give me a ride?"

"I'm sure the 'ride' he'd imagine wouldn't be the one you meant, either."

"Rika!" With a giggle, I shook my head. My camera was still focused on the car, zoomed in, and I watched as the guy got out. He really was close to my age, judging from his looks. I was nineteen, and he looked to be in his late teens, early twenties himself, but that _glare_! "No. I don't think he's the kind to take strangers for joy rides. He looks like he'd much rather take a baseball bat to anyone who dares touch his car instead."

"Can you blame him?"

"No." He sat on the hood, and I gasped sharply. "Oh my Primus! Blasphemy!" Leaning back, I lowered my camera and could have collapsed into giggle fits, if I wasn't in too much pain to make such a sharp move. "His ass is gonna scratch the paint job!"

"Pri-" She stopped and shook her head, as I glanced at her briefly, before looking back. "He'd better not fart then." Rika laughed lightly. "I wouldn't worry though. A car like that? He's probably got free washes and waxes for a lifetime."

"Yeah, probably." Lowering my eyes to my camera, I hit the review button and began cycling through the pictures. I was about to delete them, feeling like a bit of an idiot for freaking like I did, when something caught my eye. "What the..." I leaned closer to the picture, frowning.

"Bells?"

Squinting, I tried to make out the symbol on the front. I couldn't be positive, but it looked way too familiar. Instead of deleting the pictures, I locked them and shut the camera off. "It's nothing." At least, I had no proof just yet. I put my camera away, and shook my head. _It can't be, unless they're filming the third movie, but it still doesn't make sense that the Transformers fandom would just up and disappear. _My eyes met Rika's and I sighed. _Just drop it, Bells. There's nothing you can do about it... Or is there?_ "What was this about some plan of yours?"

Her eyes were on the car, but at my words, she turned back. "Well, you know the movies really well, right? And all information on them suddenly disappeared?" I nodded and she smirked. "So bring it all back." I'm pretty sure I looked as lost as I felt, and she grinned hugely. "I mean, write fanfictions! Go on...MySpace or something and rewrite the entire story plot so people can read it. Show whoever took down all the info that it can't just die like that. You should get answers. One way or the other." She shrugged.

I thought about it a moment. Honestly, I could very likely do it. I remembered the plot, a lot of the details, and most of the lines. I could write the entire story down, and create a MySpace account or maybe a Facebook account or something, and do a lot of advertising and referencing. I could get attention. A lot of attention. The question was...did I want to?

"They went through a lot of trouble to completely demolish the fandom in just...days. If they're trying that hard to hide it, whatever the stupid reason, do I _want_ to get their attention? I mean, I don't usually watch tv. What if I missed some mass recall or announcement or something? For all I know, I'm making something out of nothing." Chewing my bottom lip, I clutched my purse close, my mind circling over the pictures. "Though, I _would_ like to know what the freakin' bloody hell's going on around here!"

"Then, when we head back, try my idea. Start small. Make your username something Transformers-related. Maybe use a picture of your tattoo."

_Or if I'm right... A picture of the Ferrari._ My eyes shot over, and I dicovered to my surprise that the driver of the Ferrari was still sitting big as he pleased on the hood, looking around with a glare. However, as my eyes landed on him, his eyes landed... Well, I might have been imagining things, but it looked like they landed on me. As quickly as they did though, they kept going, like I was once again unworthy of his stare.

Then, surprise of surprises, he looked back. His head snapped back around, and he stared at me. He was too far to make out his expression, but after a moment, the gaze was too intense for comfort. I had to look away. Luckily, Rika was gazing at her watch, and I think she missed the odd exchange.

"Hey, it's getting pretty late." She looked up and I raised an eyebrow. "If you wanna get any attention on your new little project, we'd better get the bus soon. I'll have to split ways though, I gotta work tonight." Rolling her eyes a little, she stood, and I slowly and clumsily followed suit, tying my shirt around my waist. It was just too hot to wear it, bruises or no bruises.. "But I can probably hang out tomorrow if you want, or maybe the day after."

I nodded, not really saying anything. I had no idea what tomorrow or the next day would bring, but I felt so tired. I needed to rest. Gathering my things, I followed her to the bus stop, my mind looping over plans of what I was going to do when I got home. We climbed onto the bus, and I hesitated only slightly, taking a deep breath and holding it until I was seated. My heart pounded in my chest, my mind coming sharply back to the present.

I sat at the window seat, my eyes glancing nervously around. Breathing deeply, I felt my hands clench in my lap as the bus started off. Admittedly, I was already better than I was the first time around. I had to literally force myself to breathe there, and it took all I had not to scream at every stop. I felt like I'd calmed slightly, but it definitely helped if I didn't pay attention.

So, I looked out the window. Maybe that wasn't the best idea, considering last time, I spotted a Ferrari and we got into an accident, but it helped keep my mind off everything else. Cars whizzed past, and I focused on my breathing, inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly and silently. I eyed the cars, and then did a double take as something caught my attention.

We took a corner, and passed by the Ferrari, but as a surprise, the driver wasn't sitting on the hood. In fact, the lights were on, and the car was pulling out of it's spot, nearly zooming to the light at the corner. As we drove past, I squinted, trying to see through the tinted front windshield. When that didn't work, I tried to catch a glimpse of the symbol on the front, looking for the rearing horse, but a car went past in the other direction, obscuring my view.

_Damn!_ Turning forward, I closed my eyes, breathing deeply, trying to stall the fear creeping slowly up my spine. _It's just a car. Ri's right. I'm acting crazy over a simple car._ It was an odd feeling I couldn't explain, but once I laid eyes on the car, I felt compelled to keep staring at it. It was kind of freaky, actually. I kept my eyes closed, breathing in and out slowly. I heard the dings of the stop requests every few minutes, but didn't move until I felt Rika moving next to me.

We got off the bus and I breathed a sigh of relief. "I don't think riding on the bus will ever be the same for me." I shuddered and leaned against the bus stop shelter, trying to calm down. I glanced down the street, looking for the next bus we would be taking, and sucked in a sharp breath, instead. "What the hell? Rika, am I the only one seeing that Ferrari?" It was the same one as before. Even as I watched, it pulled over, shaking ever so slightly with the rumble of it's engine.

There was an almost annoyed sigh. "Bella... Oh jeez, you're right. This is a pretty huge city, what're the odds of seeing the Ferrari like that? Huh."

My eyes locked on the front. I now had a close up, clear view of it's front end, and I felt my chest tighten as I laid eyes on the symbol decorating the front end. "Impossible." My eyes trailed over the red edges, the tiny face-like symbol, and I reached up to rub at my eyes under the sunglasses. _Impossible. It's just not...possible._ Blinking, I stared at the front, thrown by what I was seeing. _He wasn't in the second movie, and the car from the third is supposed to be red, I think._

"There's our bus."

I didn't know how I felt about what I was seeing, but my mind immediately began looking for all kinds of logical reasons. _It's the car from the third movie. They're gonna film, or are filming, the third movie. It's a Transformers buff. I hit my head, I'm seeing things. It just _looks_ like the Autobot symbol from here._ Following Rika closely, I barely resisted the urge to look back at the car. My face felt cold, and if my heart was pounding before, it was out right doing a jig now. And not from the bus.

Well, not from the bus alone.

This bus was full, so Rika and I had to stand. Glancing back, I felt my eyes widen as I peered out the back window. The Ferrari sped out of it's spot, cutting off other vehicles and followed the bus. We took a corner, and so did it. "Rika..." We stopped at a light, so did it. When we started off, it didn't turn. It stayed on our tail. "It's following us."

"Bella, you need to stop. You're making something out of nothing. The driver probably just has something do to near the other end of the city."

"So it stopped and parked when we got off?" I tore my eyes away from it with some difficulty, and fixed my wide-eyed gaze on my best friend. "Instead of keeping going, it stopped when we got off. It waited. Then it cut off other cars to keep on this bus' ass." I winced as I realized two children were looking up at us, and hoped they hadn't heard me.

"Coincidence."

"I don't think so."

"What do you think it is? Someone spying on you? Stalking us?" She shook her head, and brushed her blonde ponytail over her shoulder. "How ridiculous does that sound? We're two normal girls. We have _nothing_ unusual about us. We have _no_ reason to have _anyone_ to follow us, let alone someone with the money to afford a _Ferrari_ of all cars. Just think about it a moment. It doesn't make sense." Her look was pleading.

Looking at the ground, I hated being so confused. Part of me just... I felt like there was no other reason it was behind the bus. The Ferrari stopped when we got off the bus but... But then again, _we_ weren't the only ones to get off that bus, and some of the people who got off it with us, got on this one with us. So if it was following someone, it wasn't necessarily _us_.

Sighing out, I shook my head and offered her a tiny smile. "I'm sorry. You're right. I just... Everything's freaking me out. A lot of this just doesn't make sense, no matter how I look at it, and I can't understand any of it. I feel confused, lost." Frowning, I felt my eyes narrow. "I'm gonna find out what's going on. I'm going to create an account on MySpace and list various things from Transformers, as well as a movie summary, and write fanfictions about it. After all, if their stories aren't up anymore, maybe I can piss some people off by using their story ideas. One way or another, like you said, I'm gonna get answers."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_So I did as I threatened. First things first, after Rika's little wake up call, I refused to look out the back window again. I didn't look when we traded buses again, but I had a feeling it was following us until we split up, and then continued to follow me after. Maybe Rika's right though, I'm just making something out of nothing. Either way, when I got home, the first thing I did was to boot up my computer._

_Was it odd that my computer screen flickered? Oh well, probably the crappy fans taking their tole. It never happened before. I should probably take it to my brother soon._

_I created a MySpace account, and immediately began making all kinds of Transformers references. I chose the username 'Sideswipe's Sunshine', basically because the twins were my favorite Transformers characters. Then I wrote up a summary of my favorite all time movie, and yes, that's over all my other favorite fandoms. I posted it, made it public for everyone to see, and then uploaded a close-up of the Autobot insignia both on my chest, and from a cropped picture of the Ferrari, as well as images of my necklace and earrings, and anything else I had that was Transformers-related._

_Oh yeah, and that includes snapshots of my newest shirts, as well as the DVD covers._

_Hell, I even slipped one of my contacts in and got a close up of the effect._

_Then a set the search engine for 'Cybertronian', 'Autobot', 'Decepticon', 'Allspark', and every word I could think of that would guarantee I got a lot of hits. Finally, I logged into the fanfiction site, headed to a section for original works, and posted the first chapter of my newest fanfiction. Then I sat back with a smile._

_I slept well when I finally went to bed._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Note** : I don't know if I own 'Sideswipe's Sunshine'. It's probably been used before, so in that case, I don't own it. XD

**Written** : July 22, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	5. On the Run

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I don't know if I should make this even a partial self-insert. This story contains aspects of my own life, to help me write it, and as I write it, I keep getting the feeling _I'm_ the one living it. -.-' I keep expecting to visit only to have the Transformer category disappear. ROFL! Maybe I'm just tired. XD

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_So it looks like my work might have been...well, it caught attention, just the wrong kind. Trust me, I'm not happy about it either. First thing I did when I woke up, even before updating my journal/diary, was to check on my new site, only to realize... I didn't have one._

_Yeah, I said it._

_I did all that damn work last night, only to find my account deleted, and my computer blocked from MySpace. What's worse? I decided to check Twitter and Facebook, only to find out I was blocked from those too. I didn't even _have_ accounts on those sites!_

_Ok, weird just got stepped up to unbelievable, and yeah... I'm pretty damned pissed! If they think this is going to stop me, they're sadly mistaken. I can be pretty God-damned stubborn when I want to be. So screw them! I want answers!_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**(Next Day)**

"Oh, you think you can beat me _that_ easily?" Growling, I grabbed my phone, and got up, stalking away from my computer. I was _so_ pissed, it was all I could do not to punch the side of the computer. Not that I was a violent person, but as I just stated, I was _maaaadddd_! Hitting the speed dial, I raised the phone to my ear, and frowned when I heard a strange static. "Oh come on, you're not helping!" I put the phone down, turning it off as I slid it back into the charger, before stepping into the other room.

My apartment was just a little bachelorette apartment. A small living room, a single bedroom, a tiny kitchen, and a couple of closets and/or storage rooms. My phone was actually a set of cordless phones. Two for the price of one. I had one in the main living room, and the other was set in my bedroom. That's not including the cell I kept in case I was out, and had some trouble.

So I wandered into the living room and grabbed the second phone. "I _just_ charged it! Don't tell me it's dead already!" Raising the second phone to my ear, I hit the speed dial and the talk button to get it going, only to get the odd static again. I nearly recoiled from the phone, as the sound droned into my already aching head like there was no tomorrow.

For a change, my ribs felt not so bad. I didn't feel I _needed_ to take meds for them, but my _head_ on the other hand... That felt like someone was taking a jackhammer to it, and I began to contemplate going back to the doctor for follow up tests. Surely, a minor concussion couldn't hurt _this_ bad for _this_ long, right?

Admittedly, I slammed the phone down in the charger. Then I cringed, hoping I didn't damage it.

"What. Is. Going. _On_?" Again, I growled, and I plopped onto my couch. I stared at the blank screen of the television, my eyes almost automatically trailing to my DVD player and DVDs. _First the accident. I don't care how _anyone_ explains it, something is off._ The frown felt permanently fixed to my face, but my eyes stung with the threat of tears. I'd stopped looking for answers. I was starting to feel hopeless that I'd ever _get_ any. _Then my DVDs somehow erase themselves. But _noooo_. They were always blank!_ The sarcasm made me roll my eyes, as I curled up with my knees against my chest. _Let's not forget that cop. Did people _really_ all state they saw a robot hitting the bus? Even if I wasn't -supposed- to be there, why did they all say that? I mean, it would be a mention from kids, but you'd think adults would be more serious._

With a sigh, I reached forward and grabbed my cell phone. I flipped it open, only to feel my eyes narrow as it showed I had no signal. _Then we're followed by a Ferrari, my overnight MySpace account is deleted and I'm blocked from other networking sights. My fanfiction is gone and _all_ my phones are suddenly not working?_ The sting in my eyes was getting worse, and I dragged in a shaky breath. _Not one aspect of this makes any sense. This has nothing to do with filming the third movie, or an actor's death. How can _that _explain my DVDs suddenly and mysteriously going blank? This has nothing to do with a recall, either. It would be common knowledge and all over television and the papers._

My mind went to the Ferrari._ It had the Autobot symbol. _It didn't make sense it was related to the third movie, with the rest of the Transformers fandom disappearing. Same went for being just a fan itself. If the Transformers fandom disappeared, there wouldn't _be_ fans. It just...didn't make sense.

Unless of course, heaven forbid, somehow the movie became real. Even so, for all _this_ to make any sense, I would have had to have fallen into some alternate reality, for the fandom to never have existed in the first place, or _millions_ of people would have been raising a very public stink.

Rolling my eyes, I snorted to myself. "Pah, someone woulda had to have wished on a hell of a lot of shooting stars and birthday cakes combined in order for _that_ to happen. I'd have better chances of winning the lottery. A million times over. And stumbling over a literal pot of gold at the end of the rainbow." Shaking my head, I sighed and let it sag back against the couch. "Just what's going on?"

Pursing my lips, I stared at the ceiling a long moment. I had a monthly pass, so I didn't need to worry about paying for bus rides. I had no way of finding out if Jeff was home first, but I could just stop by. The worst it would do would be to put me through stress, with actually riding a bus. It still felt like I was rushing that, but I had no way to get a ride. I'd have to return to work in a day or two, so I'd have to take the bus then anyways. Jeff was a hacker, he could help me get more Transformers things up, or at the very least, probably figure out who blocked me and maybe why.

Not to mention, I still needed to figure out what happened on MySpace.

My eyes narrowed, and I stood abruptly. "I'm not gonna get anything solved, just sitting here on my ass." I began puttering around the house, brushing my hair and teeth, taking some Advil, and then slipping my shoes on. I grabbed my purse, checked to make sure I had everything, then headed out the front door. Just as I was closing the door, I could have sworn I heard a knock at my back door, but shook it off. There was only one person I felt like visiting with right now, and he didn't normally do house calls.

Closing the door behind me, I ignored the knocking and locked up. Then I walked down the hall. Oh, did I forget to mention I had two doors? My back door led straight to the parking lot around back. The front led to the hall that led to the front foyer, mailboxes, and front door, which was only feet from the bus stop. It only took me two or three minutes to get there, then I dug my pass out of my purse as I waited.

Glancing up, my breath caught in my throat, and a sense of almost foreign panic ran through me. A flash of yellow caught my attention, and I found myself staring at the same Ferrari. There was no doubt in my mind now. However impossible it seemed, that Ferrari was followng me. There was just no other explanation for why it was everywhere I was, ever since last night. In such a big city, how else was it I was seeing the same damn car all over the place?

It drove along the road, strangely enough seeming impatient whenever it got caught behind other cars. As it approached, however, it slid into the bus lane carelessly, cutting off an incoming bus, which honked angrily. It drove up, slowing as it neared, until it came to a stop right in front of me.

I felt like my heart was going to leap out of my chest. No doors opened. The engine didn't shut off. The window never rolled down. The car, upon closer inspection still bearing the Autobot insignia, just idled in front of me. My eyes scanned every inch of it I could see, and they narrowed as I spotted the cursive writing just behind the front wheel well. I expected it to say either the make or model, but what it really said had me stepping back.

"No way..." I shook my head. "That's just not possible." _Even if in some impossible twist the universe _did_ become real, this would be set just after the first movie, and _he_ wasn't even _in_ the second movie, two years later!_ I stepped back again and froze as the engine seemed to rev. I _know_ it was my imagination, but it almost sounded annoyed. The door then opened. The _passenger_ door, and once again my overactive imagination ran away with me, as it seemed to move slowly, like whoever was opening the door really didn't want to.

Then I knew I lost my mind, when not only was the passenger seat empty...

So was the driver seat.

"Impossible. No."

I'd been watching. No one got out of that car! Even as people peeked into the car and began murmuring, some people taking pictures, I felt the panic blossom, and stepped to the side. The car inched forward ever so slightly. As I stepped to the side again, wanting to move away and considering how far the next bus stop was, the car moved forward.

The burning was back in my eyes. "Stop it." I shook my head. "Who-_What_ever you are, just stay away from me!" With a final panicked yell, I turned and began running. I had no intention of stopping at the next bus stop. I heard a door slam and the squeal of tires I ran down the street until the first alley, and ducked down it, running as fast as I could out onto another street. My ribs began pulling almost immediately, stealing my breath, and still I ran. I cut off cars as I dashed across the street and down another alley.

The good thing about living in Tranquility Nevada for years was the bonus of knowing which alleys were and weren't dead ends. After all, you don't want to be walking through a random alley at night, and get caught by a mugger or rapist because you didn't think to check and make sure it was open on both ends, first. I ran through several and down multiple streets, before nearly collapsing on a bench and hissing as I noisily wheezed. My chest hurt. My lungs hurt. I could barely see straight, let alone think, but one thought and image kept flooding my mind.

_That car had no driver! That freakin' car was driving itself!_ "Maybe it was...r-r-remote c-control?" The wheezes were embarrassing and a little worrying. My vision swam as my lungs demanded more air, and I struggled to pull enough in to satisfy them, despite the pain. "Someone's...i-idea of a...j-joke?" That didn't make sense though. If the Transformers fandom disappeared, who or what was _that_? I was beginning to regret ever leaving my house to begin with!

It took me some time to get my breath back, but when I did, I looked at a small map attached to a bus stop lamp pole and found my location. Then I pinpointed the bus route I needed and where the stop came up. It took me a few minutes to find it, and I was lucky enough the bus was just arriving, and I hopped on quickly. To say I was now officially terrified and paranoid was an understatement. I kept a more aware eye on the cars around me now, and every time I saw a flash of yellow, I nearly jumped out of my seat.

By the time I arrived at my stop, I nearly dashed off the bus and down the street. I crossed the street, walked down it a ways, around a corner, and crossed the street again, before heading up the stairs to an apartment complex. My heart never stopped racing, and the panicked feeling never once faded the entire time, even as I buzzed a specific apartment.

It was a long, terrifying moment, before I heard the familiar voice on the other end.

"Ri? It's m-me." My voice shook, and I swallowed painfully, struggling to ignore the fear, the pain. My throat closed up, however, and the burning in my eyes grew even more powerful, until I was wiping at the tears clouding my vision. There was an almost immediate buzz, and I pulled on the door, slipping in and running up the stairs. Even as I saw her blonde head pop into view, and her worried look, I launched myself at her, finally losing control. I cried hysterically into her arms. I think I even whimpered on what happened, but I doubt she understood what I said through my tears.

She almost dragged me back to her apartment, and even as I heard her door shut, my legs gave out.

"What the hell's going on?" I felt her rubbing at my back, her body rigid.

It took me three tries to swallow, and I had to take a couple minutes of breathing deeply and pushing through the confusion and terror to look up at her. "I... I don't know! The F-Ferrari-" I watched as her expression hardened slightly, and caught her as she half rolled her eyes before forcibly stopping herself. "No...R-Rika, the c-car had no driver!"

"Bella..." She sighed, pulling back and settling down on her knees. "I know you're confused, and you're right that a lot of this doesn't make sense, but-"

"N-No! That's not it! It pulled up _right_ in f-front of me, and the door opened, and _no one_ w-w-was...inside!" My throat hurt from my nearly screaming the words, and I choked a little, coughing as it caught me. "A-And...And I was watching! No one got out, either! Even other p-people s-saw! Every time I t-t-took a s-step, it followed me, for G-God's sake!" I took a deep breath, and let it out slowly, trying to breathe evenly and get control of myself.

Closing her eyes, she frowned. "Can you hear yourself?" Opening them, she leveled me with a compassionate look, but I knew she didn't believe me. "Maybe... Maybe it happened, I don't know. I wasn't there. But what could it mean? Don't you see how impossible this sounds? I don't even _know_ anything about this fandom of yours, and we're _best friends_. It's just..." She shook her head. "I can't believe it unless I see it. I'm sorry, Bella."

"No." Somehow, I could see the logic in her words, and I didn't blame her. It _sounded_ impossible. Hell, it _felt_ impossible. I wanted her to believe me, I needed her to, but I couldn't blame her for not believing. "I was the same. I kept seeing signs something wasn't right, but I kept... I didn't believe it. I still don't. I keep thinking it was AI or remote control or something, you know?" She nodded, wiping my tears away, and I laughed shakily. "But deep in my heart, something keeps asking. What if it's somehow become real? It doesn't seem possible, but things keep... They feel like they're pointing towards it all somehow coming real." The fact she didn't know about the fandom was both surprising and not. I'd only told her about the movie in passing, but she never watched it with me. I didn't keep bringing it up with her, because I was too busy living life with her, and movies and fandoms didn't really kick in a whole lot, other than a word here or there, or an occasional, vague mention.

Then again, it was hard for me to believe that anyone could _not_ know about it, considering how popular it was.

"Something is wrong." My voice rose to a whimper. "Something is so seriously wrong."

"Look, what about your MySpace account?"

"Deleted overnight, and my computer is weirdly blocked from accessing it again, along with Facebook and Twitter. Not only that, but none of my phones worked when I was at home. Both my landlines had weird static, and my cell had no signal."

"But you always have a signal at home." Her frown deepened, a glint of worry crossing her features.

"I know!" Leaning back against the wall, I shook my head. "I don't know how much more I can take. I feel like I'm losing my mind! First the accident. Then the weird cop. Then the pictures that show me being in two places at once. Then my DVDs going blank. Then the Transformers fandom completely vanishes into thin air, like it never existed. Now all this... And it all started with that damn Ferrari!"

"Ok, this is beyond weird. I say we go to the cops." I gave her a look I'm sure was pretty incredulous. "Think about it, I'm a witness to all this. And if we can track down that Ferrari driver, maybe we can get some answers."

"Wasn't I suggesting that yesterday?" Raising an eyebrow, I laughed weakly. I didn't feel all that much better. My heart still pounded, and my head was swimming. My ribs had more or less gone numb, but my chest felt heavy, making it harder to breathe.

She nudged my leg with her foot. "Are you ok?" I nodded, but she didn't look convinced. "You're as white as a sheet."

"I feel like I just saw a ghost, and I ran a few blocks with injured ribs. I'm not exactly feeling like the Energizer bunny at the moment." To prove my point, I breathed in deeply, wincing at the harsh wheeze that escaped my throat. I saw her wince, and let the breath out slowly.

"Well, if you're right and you're being followed by Satan's Ferrari-" I blinked, having a flashback to when Sam first saw his car transform, and was talking into his cell phone. I could have laughed, if I wasn't in so much pain. "-then call the cops. At the very least, they can look into it and get some answers, right? Maybe that Foster guy is back and can help out. He was kinda cute." She winked, and despite the pain I was in, I _did_ laugh. Trust her to make light of what I felt was so very terrifying.

I think that's part of the reason I decided to come to her, rather than go to Jeff. I knew she'd find..._some_ way of making me feel better. "Hey..." An idea hit me, and I felt my eyes narrow. Then I hesitated. _If they blocked my IP address from those sites, they can track it. If I pissed off some very big, very powerful men -And I'm not talking giant alien robots, I'm not ready to admit there's even the slightest possibility I've entered some alternate reality and they _exist_- then I really don't want to bring them down on Rika too, do I?_ Then again, there was no real proof that anyone was after me. Maybe there was a virus or something online that just automatically blocked IPs that made any mention of the movies on social networking sites.

But even that seemed too random.

"Yes...?"

Blinking, I looked up. "I was just thinking. My computer's been blocked from sites online. I can't even get anything related to Transformers back up." Unless of course, I thought of other sites they might not have, and put things up on there.

It seemed Rika was thinking the same as me, because she suddenly grinned. "Then we'll just have to make forums."

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

Jesse Foster frowned. He was wearing regular blue jeans and a t-shirt, and he stood at Isabella Cameron's back door. He knocked again, eyes narrowing, and when he got no answer, he peered in the windows, where ever he could.

"Excuse me."

The voice startled him and he spun in place. An elderly woman was frowning at him deeply, a rather suspicious look in her eyes. "Oh, pardon me." He grimaced slightly, before gesturing to the door behind him. "I'm Officer Jesse Foster-" He produced his badge, which he'd been allowed to keep, and showed it to her, watching as her expression lightened again, before flipping it shut and sticking it back in his pocket. Nervously, he eyed the black Topkick C4500 parked in the parking lot, before turning his eyes to the lady again, trying to avoid locking eyes on the man in the driver seat. "Have you seen the occupant of this residence, Isabella Cameron?"

The lady blinked and frowned. "I'm sorry. I haven't seen her, no." The lady shook her head, before wandering off. "Excuse me, officer. I need to get back home and take my medicine."

"Alright. Thank you anyways, ma'am." With a growing feeling of dread, Jesse slowly made his way over to the truck. He eyed the monstrous machine like it was going to grow teeth and suddenly eat him up, but swallowed his fear and walked around to the passenger side, nearly jumping out of his skin as the door popped open on it's own. "Jesus, man! How many times do I have to _beg_ you not to do that?" He hissed, rubbing at his chest. "I'm gonna have a heart attack before I'm thirty! I just know it!"

"The femme is not home."

Jesse had climbed into the passenger seat, but at the sound of the voice, he jumped bad enough to smack his head on the roof and literally fall right back out of the cab again, causing the soldier in the driver seat to crack up laughing. Even the truck seemed to jolt, and a deep chuckle was heard, as the young red head sat up and grumbled to himself.

"You ok?" Lennox leaned over, eyeing the young officer.

"After everything you've put me through, I'll never be 'ok' again." Foster growled, standing. He glared at the truck darkly, before steeling himself and climbing back in, buckling himself in this time, before he could make another mistake. His face was deep red, and he glared around. "Seriously, I don't even know how I'm still sane. Or maybe I'm not. Maybe I lost my marbles some time ago and this is all just one big... Well, it's not a fantasy, and I sincerely doubt it's a dream."

"Marbles? I thought mostly human younglings played with marbles?"

Rolling his eyes, Will tapped on the dash. "Never mind. Might wanna ask big bot to put a trace on her cell. We need to find her as soon as possible."

"Already have a rough location. The femme left the house just moments before Officer Jesse Foster knocked on her back door. She was just spotted running across the street, with a look of terror on her face, and her arm wrapped around her ribs. Ratchet has followed her onto one of your Earth transportation machines-" The passenger door shut quietly, but Jesse still jolted. "Calm yourself human, before you lubricate yourself in my interior."

"God that sounded so wrong." Jesse's face twisted into one of horror, and Will cracked up again. "How can you take this so lightly?"

"I fought with these bots for the safety of our planet. They might seen harsh on the outside, but they're good guys. They're here to protect us." The honest sincerity in William Lennox's eyes had Jesse relaxing ever so slightly. "Anyways, was Ratchet able to determine her destination?" Then he frowned. "Wait, a 'look of terror'? Is she in danger?" His eyes suddenly widened.

"Unfortunately no. Your human traffic systems are horribly primitive, causing traffic backups quite often. He also sensed an unidentified Cybertronian presence nearby and dragged back to try and locate it, in case it was a Decepticon." There was silence a moment, then a growl. "He lost both the signal and the femme."

Jesse shook his head. "I can't believe this is all real. Some movie. Jeez, I can't help but wonder if the poor girl's even got any idea what's going on." His frown was deep as he glanced to the back door. He recalled meeting her, how innocent she seemed in it all, when she wasn't yelling at him or being sarcastic.

"I doubt it, or she'd probably be doing more than stirring up trouble with MySpace accounts. The bots are worried about what she might know, and the Sec-Def wants her brought into custody for questioning." Will shot Jesse a look. "There's suspicion she might not be human."

"Dude, I saw her _bleed_. Not that blue-green energy-"

"Energon."

Foster ignored the truck's correction. "-stuff. Real red honest-to-goodness human blood."

"Still..." Will sighed. "We have our orders."

There was a sound from the truck, before it's engine rumbled. "Optimus Prime is calling off the search for the femme until we locate the unknown presence. There's some worry we would not have caught the signal if we hadn't been in the area. It might be a Decepticon trying to lie low, or a damaged Autobot ally. We are to draw as little attention to ourselves and our human allies as possible in the meantime. So Officer Foster, if I may ask... Please keep your falling out of my cab to a minimum."

More laughter, and Foster sank lower in his seat, glaring at the truck's dash. "Jesus Bloody Mary Joseph! How did I get myself into this?"

* * *

**Note** : I only do the time changes so people don't ask what they are. It's just a little thing to help people know more easily how much time passes between chapters.

**Written** : July 23, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	6. Abducted

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : If the diary entries cause you to stop and think for a moment 'what is she talking about?', then they're doing their job. I didn't really realize it until later in the story, but I put them there to kind of make people wonder. Some of them, at least. ;) Think of some of them as the evil cliffhangers everyone hates. Some of them, at least. LOL!

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Despite Rika's words, I couldn't dismiss the whole Ferrari incident. My head hurt, but I know what I saw. What was worse, I was too paranoid to leave Rika's apartment all day. I'm just lucky she was more than up to a sleep over, and since she was close to my workplace, I wouldn't need to bus it there. We created forum sites all over the internet, half for me, and half for her._

_Part of me was wondering if she was more into all this for the trouble she was undoubtedly going to get into, or to actually help me._

_Then, things started to look up. Well, they _seemed_ to start to look up. I was cautiously optimistic. _Very_ cautiously, though. Things couldn't change that fast. It was as impossible as...well...all of _this_ happening to begin with._

_When there was no sign of the strange Ferrari the next day, I realized I couldn't stay at Rika's forever. I took it to mean the car was gone. I mean, I didn't see a _peek_ of it! After work, I'd head home and see if my phones were working yet._

_Oh yeah, and the sites? They were once again deleted overnight, much to Rika's astonishment and annoyance._

_Now what?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**(Two Days Later)**

My eyes darted around as I walked down the street. I'd just finished a long, tiresome day at work, and my head hurt more than anything else. I was tired, sore, and getting pretty cranky with anyone who so much as _looked_ at me wrong. Even worse? A few of my co-workers _were_ Transformers fans, last time I saw them. Now? They wouldn't know an Autobot if one came up and bit them in the ass.

I really was starting to feel like I was losing my mind.

Luckily, the Ferrari either listened to me, as completely ridiculous as that thought sounded, or it had found someone else to harass. Either way, I was heading to the bus stop to head home, and I hadn't seen the slightest thing that was remotely unusual. Thank GOD!

A single black and white cruiser sped by, catching my attention because it was an exact model of Barricade from the movie. I rolled my eyes though, seeing the young officer in the driver seat. _Obssess much? Barricade was pretty totaled when Bee got through with him._ Not to mention, most of Tranquility's police force drove Ford Saleen Mustang cruisers. With a small smirk, I shook my head and stopped off at the bus station, waiting. _Mustangs are hot. Corvettes are hotter, and Ferraris measure up in the Corvette range, but...Mustangs are hot!_

I dug my pass out of my purse, hesitating as I spotted by cell phone. The smile only grew when I realized I had a signal once again, and I relaxed in the warm sun as I eyed the busses coming and going. _Ninety five, One-Eighteen..._ My eyes caught sight of the cars in between busses, and I think my main source of comfort was that not one of them were even vaguely reminiscent of Transformers, but for that cruiser earlier. Finally, my bus showed up, and I climbed aboard, flashing him my pass before moving on.

Then I paused as a symbol caught my attention, out of the corner of my eye. I turned to look more closely, but blinked when I didn't see it anymore. "Great. I'm imagining things now." I looked back at the driver who was staring at me from dark sunglasses, but he turned away after a moment, and so did I. With a hint of a smirk tugging at my lips once again, I moved to an empty seat and sat down, peeking up at the driver again.

Despite the fact he was at least twice my age, he was definitely a good looking man. He looked to be European, maybe Hispanic, with short spiky black hair that sat in an attractively unruly mess, tanned skin, and despite being a bus driver, he wore a suit under a long tan trench coat. Odd, but somehow it suited his frame. Well, ok, it suited him, but I couldn't help but use 'odd' as a word to desribe him, even as I looked at him.

Shouldn't he have been wearing a uniform, at least?

What was _really_ odd was that he turned his head to the side at almost every stop, and I had the weird feeling like he was looking at me. At that point, I decided screw it. As soon as I got home, I was going to find my doctor's number -I still don't know why I didn't put the number on my cell. It just never crossed my mind, I guess- and I was going to make an appointment, to see if I'd suffered more damage in the crash than I was first told.

The entire time of the bus ride, I kept looking at the driver. When my stop finally came up, I exited the bus, and turned, waiting for the next bus I'd need. I watched as the bus I'd just gotten off of sped off, and felt my eyes narrow when I realized... Most of the busses were red and white in coloring. This one was red and blue.

I shook off the odd observation. _Jesus, I'm looking for Autobots around every corner! There are different bus lines, some are different colors! That's all there is to it!_ I turned away and gazed towards the incoming busses. It didn't take long for the next one to show up, a regular red and white bus. I boarded this one and stood near the back door.

I still felt nervous about being on busses, but with every clean ride that didn't get into an accident, I felt a little better. It didn't help, however, when I'd hear semi horns near the bus. I'm pretty sure my heart has quite literally leapt into my throat more than once; the only thing keeping me from screaming.

The rest of the ride was pretty much uneventful, and I smiled in relief as I made it home. Dropping my purse on my table, I looked around, before turning to my phone. A quick check showed they were working as well. "Hah! Much better! I knew it was all in my head!" Then I frowned. _Does that mean the Ferrari was in my head? Maybe there was a driver, and I just hallucinated that there wasn't. People would take pictures just for a close up of a gorgeous car like that._ Pursing my lips, I grabbed my phone, dug around for the doctor's number, and then dialed.

I made an appointment for the next day, and hung up, booting up my computer. The fans were a slight relief, telling me that at least _that_ hadn't changed. A quick check online showed I was cleared for the networking sites, but still blocked from a lot of features, like blogging, story-writing and more. All my information on MySpace had either been deleted or changed, but what really caught my attention was my new screen name.

Gone was 'Sideswipe's Sunshine'. Instead, I was now going by my real name, leaving no doubt in my mind whoever was hiding all Transformers info knew who I was. It was a little unnerving. Still, whoever it was, if they were at all responsible for any of the odd things going on in my life, they were pulling back. They freed up my phones and my internet connections. No one was here, knocking down my door.

Shaking my head, I looked at several mails I had from different people, all asking for more about 'Transformers' and where I got the idea and such. I read them all, biting my lip, before leaving it be. I signed out of MySpace and checked on the fanfiction site. Again, no change. Well, that wasn't true. There was still no Transformers sub-category, but my story -which I'd tried putting up again- had been flagged and deleted -again.

"Ok, so all is not well." I sat back, pursing my lips as I decided what to do next. Turning off the screen on my computer, I turned and left the room. I looked to the phone sitting idly on my table, and then turned my attention to the back window. I walked over, and peered out at the parking lot, at all the older, normal cars out there. Taking a breath, I stepped out onto my back porch and shut the door behind me, taking a deep breath as I sat down.

The sun felt good, and almost immediately, I could feel the stress melting out of me. I lay back on the cement porch, relaxing and just breathing. I didn't even think. I stared at the back of my eyelids, doing everything in my power _not_ to think. It felt...good. Relaxing. For the first time in a week, I felt normal, like absolutely nothing was wrong.

"Isabella Cameron?"

The voice caused me to jolt, and I hissed as my ribs pulled uncomfortably. Rubbing at them, I blinked up at an elderly lady, one of my neighbors. She smiled down at me, and I smiled up at her.

"There you are! There was a man here looking for you the other day, sweetie." She shambled over with her walker. "Very polite young man. Oh, what was his name?" She squinted and frowned as I sat up, deep in thought. "He had reddish hair. Oh! Officer Jesse Foster." She nodded. "He said he was looking for you."

"Really?" I tilted my head a little, trying to think of what he could want. My head swam a little, but by now I felt like I was getting used to it, so it barely phased me. The throbbing was annoying, but I seemed to be getting used to that, too. "Did he say what he wanted?"

She shook her head. "I'm sorry dear. He left in a big black truck." Her eyes widened. "I've never _seen_ such a big truck! And there was this cute young soldier in the driver seat."

I felt my eyes widen. _A _big_ truck, driven by a soldier?_ Standing up quickly, I think I startled her. She stepped back shakily, and I gaped a moment, before forcing a smile. "Thank you for delivering the message. I'll... I'll look into it. Um, I really need to go." _I'm not dealing with this. Not right now. Not when things are _finally_ starting to look up again._ "Excuse me." Turning, I nearly ran into my apartment, drawing my blinds after closing the door. I almost collapsed on my couch. "It's chasing me." With a small, nearly hysterical laugh, I shook my head and leaned forward, grabbing the phone book and flipping it open. "Psychiatrist, here I come." The idea frightened me, but what if I really did suffer some form of brain damage?

My eyes burned and I flipped through the yellow pages, looking for a number to more or less jump out at me. When one did, I reached for my phone, my hand hesitating above it and shaking.

_A week ago, my life was absolutely normal. What happened? I practically obssessed over Transformers, and yeah, on more than one occasion, I wished it was real, but I never imagined anything like _this_!_ My necklace felt warm against my skin, and I grasped it losely, before reaching up and rubbing at my throbbing temple. I felt a little warmer than usual. Maybe there was something really wrong with me.

Grabbing the phone, I held it in front of me. I stared down at the small handset, at the buttons, and weighed my options. Then, before I could dial a single number, my phone rang.

I nearly jumped out of my skin, and then grimaced as a particularly nasty pull ran through my ribs. The number was private, unidentified, so I held back in answering it. The first thought to cross my mind was 'telemarketer'. Then again, with everything else going on... Not to mention, Foster was supposedly trying to get ahold of me, right? Almost hesitantly, I hit the talk button and raised the phone to my ear. Somehow, I had a feeling I was going to regret this.

"Hello?"

There was almost ominous silence for a long moment, before a noisy breath and a rather masculine voice. "Isabella Cameron?"

Frowning, I tried to think if the voice was at all familiar. It was strong, sounded confident, and most definitely male. Not deep, _deep_, but definitely attractively deep. "Um, yea-uh, yes."

"Miss Cameron, this is B-Casey, uh _Barr_-" I raised an eyebrow at his stutter and wondered if he was just a young officer, like Foster. Or maybe I just scared Foster so bad, my reputation was preceding me here. I couldn't help the small smirk at the idea. "I wish to speak with you about your accident, and the...strange circumstances surrounding it. Also, I have questions to your knowledge on the Transformers movie."

"Oh, no! Hold it _right_ there!" I stood up sharply, feeling my entire body go rigid. "I've had about all I can take with anything remotely related to Transformers!"

"I have reason to believe they may be connected."

"What? Wheeljack farted and I got sucked into an alternate reality?" There was a choked snort on the other end of the line, and I ignored it. "If you honestly think anything along those lines, let me save you the trouble. I have the number for an apparently well known psychiatrist _right_ in front of me, you can have." Sure, I was once again being beyond sarcastic with the law... What was it that always made me act this way with people just trying to help me, again?

There was silence on the other end of the line. Correction, if I wasn't mistaking, there was the sound of a rather angry-sounding engine on the other end of the line. Then there was a bit of a growl. "I'm not someone you can speak like that with." The tone was a low, menacing growl. "I won't stand for it hum-" The voice cut off just as quickly as it started. "Do you want answers?"

The abrupt question caught my off-guard, and I frowned, glancing out the window. The answer to that seemed simple enough, even in a world of seemingly never-ending confusion. "Yeah."

"Then meet me out back of your apartment complex in twenty minuts." There was a click, and the dial tone returned.

His darker tone and rougher attitude had me pausing. There was no polite going or quiet, subtle inquiries. Whoever this man was, he was strict and straight to the point. Hell, his demand had me so startled, all I could do was sit there and listen to the dial tone for several long moments, before I snapped out of it.

"Well...that was rude!" Shaking my head, I hung up the phone and stood. I paced quickly around my apartment, grabbing my DVD cases, printing out a summary I'd written and saved on my flashdrive, about Transformers, and collected my 'merchandise', including an Autobot insignia belt buckle -I'd almost forgotten about that- and my shirts. I put them all in a backpack, before double checking my MP3 player for songs straight from the soundtrack.

Then I sat back and waited.

I didn't know what to expect. The way this cop acted wasn't very...policemanly. He was acting more like he was sneaking around than anything, which I thought odd. Then again, if he had answers, maybe he _needed_ to sneak around.

Then I frowned.

"_Why_, again, am I going with a cop whose undoubtedly gonna mess up my already confusing existence even more? Things are _finally_ somewhat resembling normalcy, and here I am, going to slag it all up again." With a pout, I leaned back against the couch, peering out the window every couple of minutes. _Then again, he said he had answers... Officer Foster was looking for me, right? Maybe the police found something._

Hearing an engine, I peered out the window again and got up as a cruiser nearly raced into the parking lot, pulling a tricky maneuvre to get a parking spot. I quickly headed out and locked up, before turning and eyeballing the car doubtfully.

When I realized just how young the officer in the driver seat was, that doubt grew tenfold. I recognized him as the driver of the cruiser from the other day, the same foreboding glare fixed to his features as he turned to me, narrowing his dark eyes. Then I realized why the cruiser was suddenly so very familiar.

I was hesitant to step towards him. This was what, the third obvious 'Transformer' vehicle I'd come across in as many days or less? I'd avoided the other two, out of stubborness, or sheer dumb luck, but this one...

I shook my head then. _What the hell am I thinking? It's just a freakin' Mustang! A hot Mustang, granted, but a Mustang nonetheless!_

"You comin' or not?" He shouted from the car, the engine revving a little. "We'd better hurry, we got some unwanted attention on our asses!"

That got me moving! The first thing to cross my mind was that damned Ferrari once again. I was over, running towards the car. I didn't even care that it was the back seat he opened to me, or the fact he would have had to twist rather painfully to open it and he didn't appear to move, I just hopped in! As the door shut, I reached back and pulled the seatbelt over my lap. "What the hell's going on?"

The driver didn't answer as he quickly reversed, his tires nearly squealing as he sped out of the parking lot. Imagine my shock, however, when we spun onto the highway, only for me to lock eyes once again with a black GMC Topkick speeding our way.

"Slag!"

I jumped, turning to the officer in surprise. Then I smiled. "Well, at least I know where you know Transformers from." His eyes shot to me in the mirror, and I was shocked to see they almost flashed red. Then I remembered my contacts, which I'd also stuffed in my purse. "Nice. I have a pair like those, but they're Autobot blue. I didn't know anyone had Decepticon red."

He'd turned away during my talking, but once again his eyes shot to me, a dark, hard look in them. "I have no idea what you're referring to, femme." He sounded distracted.

Rolling my eyes, I snorted. "Right. You have _no_ idea I'm talking about the red contacts you're wearing, or the fact you've already given yourself away as a Trans-fan with your language." I gave him a look, raising an eyebrow as his eyes narrowed.

"Silence, femme. I will have your information, once I've ditched this Auto-scum." He growled.

I was about to argue back, not really taking all that well to being ordered what to do by a total stranger, but then something happened, I couldn't explain. The man... He _flickered_! I stared, feeling my jaw drop as he flickered a few more times, before disappearing all together.

_Oh no. No way! This is _not_ happening to me!_ I couldn't speak, only gasp as the locks on the back doors suddenly went down on their own. _I'm hallucinating! I'm only imagining all this! He's just...a freakin' psycho cop! Great, _that's_ not any better than a psychotic freakin' alien car!_

My breathing was getting harder. My chest tightened, along with the belt around my waist. I began to pant, and soon that turned to near hyperventilation, when instead of driving further _into_ town, we turned on to a road that led _out_ of town.

"Stop! You aren't real!" I slammed my eyes shut, refusing to believe what I was seeing. Then, like an epiphany, I realized something that made me want to see if his window was shatterproof. With my head.

Casey Barr.

...Barr...i...cade...

Sure, the names weren't an exact match, but considering the vehicular mode, and the _red_, flashing eyes...

_Oh slag._

"Let me out. Let me out right now!" My voice was rising in pitch as I began to fiddle with my belt buckle. "Let me out, you overgrown piece of scrap metal!"

There was a deep metallic chuckle from the car. "I think not. Your information, if it proves valid, will be entirely too useful in defeating the Autobots once and for all."

"But... But..." _He's not real! He's not bloody real! Oh hell, real or not, I'm in a deep steamy pile of shit right now! Why not go with it? _"Megatron's dead!" If the bus accident was anything to go by, this was probably set _right_ before or after Mission CIty. "He's dead! Gone! And the Allspark is gone too!"

"And yet, you wear a piece, and undoubtedly know his location." There was something in his voice I couldn't identify.

"Ye-_NO!_ Hell no! And even if I did, I wouldn't tell you!" I could feel my body going cold, as I struggled for breath. "Besides, this isn't real!" I grabbed the necklace, feeling how warm it was against my palm. "It's just a piece of metal! Nothing more!" I was wearing a tank top, so shoving it under the collar of my shirt just didn't seem like it would work at the moment. "It's. Not. _Real_!"

There was no reply, and I got a foreboding feeling that he just didn't believe me. It probably didn't help that I sucked hugely at lying. Sitting back, I inhaled and exhaled sharply, my eyes darting around. I began pulling on the handle, and beating on the glass of the window, only for the glass to shiver but otherwise not react. Then I began pulling at my seatbelt, my breath hitching as it only tightened in response, pressing and rubbing painfully against my chest. The more I fought, the tigher it got, but oddly enough, whenever I relaxed, even for a second, it seemed to loosen a little.

I was a _little_ too distracted to think much about it.

The angry engine roar was drowned out only by the sound of the engine behind us, and I found myself spinning in place, suddenly losing sight of reality and fiction. "Ironhide! Help me!"

It was a monstrous black, GMC Topkick C4500, the identical, twin make and model of the Autobot Weapons Specialist in the movie, and the way it was following us, I had no doubts in my mind.

"Please! Help me!" I stretched and turned, feeling the seatbelt chafing at my skin, and reaching back, slamming my hand against the back window. "Help me!" I turned back and scooched down in the seat. "Let me out you overgrown toaster!" I began kicking at the seat, trying to slide out of the seatbelt at the same time, only for deep red marks to begin to appear around my chest and waist. "Letmeout!" I kicked with both feet as hard as possible against the back of the front seat, feeling my head spinning and throbbing, and watched as it jumped forward, shaking.

There was a snarl. "Cease that at once, femme, or you won't like the consequences!"

"Or what? You'll kill me? Oh, _excuse_ me, 'offline' me?" I snarled right back. "You're about as dead in the processors as Stars-creamed-himself!" The car swerved violently. "Just how pissed do you think Mega-twat will be if he finds out you had a veritable source of information in your hold and just offlined her, huh?"

"A lot less _pissed_ then he'd be if he found out I released her to Autobot custody!"

"I don't want to _be_ in _anyone's_ custody! I want to live a _normal_ freakin' life, and be left alone!" Suddenly, it hit me what I was doing. I was talking to a car. To a _talking_ car, that just couldn't possibly exist! What was I...? Did I lose my mind? Shaking my head, I snarled and kicked at the seat again. _It can't be real! It can't be real! It can't be real!_ I kicked with every cycle of that thought, as hard as I could, with both feet. At one point, I even swung my heavy, loaded purse at the window as hard as I could, putting a nice little crack in it.

And I prayed _someone_ would rescue me from this lunatic.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I kicked and I screamed. He screamed at me, I screamed at him. I don't even remember what I said, or the majority of how I flailed, trying to get free. All I knew was the sheer terror I was feeling, and how light headed I was suddenly getting._

_The car jolted, and I think I heard the sound of metal crashing painfully against metal. Suddenly, here I am, having a total flashback to the bus accident._

_If I was fighting hard before, I sure as hell was fighting for my life now. All I knew was I wanted, no... I _needed_ to get out of there, before I got myself killed!_

_I'd question my sanity later._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : July 25, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	7. Trouble Ahead

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I don't know what changed. One minute, I'm fighting for my life inside of a homocidal alien robot car, feeling my consciousness as it slips away, the next I'm air born, screaming as I suddenly come jolting back to the waking world painfully. I hit the ground hard, bashing my head against something. My already spinning world decides to turn right upside down._

_Oh, wait, it's me that's upside down. Or rather, on my back._

_I can't see straight. Everything's literally spinning in my vision, but from what I _can_ see, the cars were long gone. In their places were two giant alien robots duking it out. I think I made a comment, but for a really long while, I couldn't even move. I just lay where I was, strewn out across what felt like rocky ground, listening to and watching the robots fight._

_Then a surprisingly familiar face popped into view, and I finally had all my answers._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

"Hey! You ok?" The amazingly handsome, human and real looking William Lennox crouched down above me. His face was half shadowed, because of the sun shining down on us, but from what I could make out, his blue eyes were intense and wary, and his face and neck were all beaten up.

"Dude, you look like crap." The words were out, before I'd even thought about what I was saying, and I groaned as he barked a bit of a nervous sounding laugh. "Ow! My head!" Grimacing, I reached up and back, prodding gently at a sensitive spot on the back of my skull and hissing as I pulled my hand away. I had red on my fingers. Blood. _Great_. Not a lot, but enough to make me wince again. "As if my freakin' head didn't hurt enough already! Tell 'Hide to kick that 'Con's aft extra hard for me, ok?"

"Um...excuse me?"

I blinked up at him, finding a look of shock and confusion written on his face. "Oh, I'm sorry. I'm either hallucinating, or I've flat out lost my mind." I shrugged, not wanting to move. "Either way, I'm seeing the Transformers movie like it's alive." I pointed up at him. "Like you. You look like William Lennox." Then, without looking, I pointed towards the bots. "And they look like a pair of Cybertronians duking it out for pride and a tiny little human squishy who apparently knows more than she should."

"You think you're insane?" He raised an eyebrow, an odd look coming to his face.

"Who knows? All I know is it's sure as hell easier to believe I'm off my rocker, than that my _entire_ universe has suddenly changed. Yeah, I wished for Transformers to be real, and poof!" With a sudden burst of nearly hysterical laughter, I could feel the terror still rolling through me, and the tears pooling in my eyes. "Look ma! No hands!"

If he was giving me an odd look before, Will's eyes narrowed now, filling with concern. "Look, I have no idea what's going on, but I can guarantee you, you're not insane." Then he paused. "Or maybe you are, but you're not hallucinating." The dry tone sobered and turned serious real quick. "We've been looking for you."

"Isn't everyone?" Now I rolled my eyes, his words echoing through my head. _Not hallucinating... But it's just not possible for it to be _real_!_ "First the Ferrari, then 'Cade here, dumbaft." Moving _really_ slowly, I rolled over and looked up towards the bots, to see Ironhide belt the younger one down. "Serves him right."

"Wait...Ferrari?"

I paused then, looking at Will. "That doesn't make sense."

"Tell me about it!" He finally snapped, his eyes flashing with anger as he ran a shaking hand through his hair. "Two weeks ago, I'm heading to the desert for my station. Next thing I know, I'm thrown head first into some war with giant alien robots! My wife _just_ had a baby, too!" His mouth snapped shut then, and he gave me a dark glare, before turning away.

I could have said any number of things about that, but my head hurt so much, I just settled for burying my face in my hands. It was a long, tense moment of feeling the ground quake with the bots nearby, and tensing every time I felt Will's hand grip my arm tightly, only for him to relax a second later, before there was a deafening boom and all went silent.

Well, not entirely. There was a squeal, and agonizing sound of metal on metal that made me cringe and whimper loudly, and then the sound of a vehicle speeding noisily off. _Then_ all was silent.

"Ok, it's safe to come out now." There was a hint of sarcasm in the voice.

"No!" Was it me, or did that seem somehow childish? Then again, facing what I was facing, wouldn't _you_ rather stay in the safety of the darkness and peace your arms could provide?

There was a sigh. "We have to get you back to the base." The grip was back on my arm.

And as soon as it was, I yanked myself away, and was on my feet in an instant. My legs shook badly, as I wobbled away, leaning against whatever I could to support myself. My terror was back tenfold. Will was normally known for being a strict soldier, but otherwise a generally really nice guy, but the looks he was giving me... I had a feeling I'd be no more welcome with him than with the Decepticons, knowledge or not. Shaking my head, I backed away even more. "Just stay away from me! Why can't you just leave me alone?"

"Because you know things no normal human femme should know." Ironhide's cannons were pointing at me, and I froze. I'd seen it in the movie, with Sam. I'd seen how they reacted and thought it funny. Now, being actually _faced_ with those cannons, I suddenly didn't feel very 'lucky' at all.

Still, I couldn't resist... "My, what big cannons you have." My voice shook embarrassingly as I stared into their glowing depths. "Overcompensating for something? I heard Ratchet's more or less a miracle worker. Maybe he can help you, um, 'upgrade' your 'equipment'?" Even as I raised my eyebrow, and Will cracked up with a short laugh, Ironhide's 'eyes' narrowed, and he leaned in closer to me. "Ok, and that right there is my cue! Later boys!" Turning, I dashed off. I knew Ironhide would reach for me, and my vision kept spinning in and out, meaning I wouldn't get far. Then again, adrenaline does wonders...

And thinking was shoddy at best with my head spinning.

Still I dashed off. I headed for a nearby outcrop of rocks, stumbling as Ironhide took off after me. _The bigger they are, the harder they fall..._ I felt my eyes widen in alarm as I was suddenly hit with a mental image of Ironhide tripping over something and falling on me. _Oh hell no! He'd fall right through to China!_ I sped up even more, dodging back and forth behind cacti and rocks.

"Stop!"

"No thanks!"

I hit the rocky outcrop and began climbing through them. It was slow, awkward and painful going, because I had to stay down in the rocks to avoid Ironhide, but keep moving to avoid Will, who was pulling a Terminator behind me, following me through the rocks. My head spinning meant for a lot of slip ups, causing a rather nasty gash across my palm, that I was too panicked to really _feel_, and more than one hit to the head.

If I kept up at this rate, brain damage would be a very real possibility.

I dashed and ducked and rolled and slid, and soon, my head was the least of my pains. I was scuffed from head to toe, bleeding from over a dozen places I didn't care to _think_ about, and my eyes caught on light. I headed for it, no longer feeling the ground shaking.

It hit me, as I emerged from the other side, that Ironhide couldn't follow. He'd have to transform and drive around, because if he _tried_ to follow, he'd cause the rocks to cave in on me, and more importantly, Will. The smile was impossible to fight, as I scrambled out the other side. Never had I been more thankful to be a slimy, squishy organic!

I was wheezing painfully and loudly by this point, and I stumbled as I hit the other side. I broke into a run, and I could have died from relief alone when I realized just how close the city was. I was hitting the empty warehouse district in minutes, with hundreds of places I could hide.

...That is, if I wasn't being chased by a giant alien robot, probably carrying infrared sensors or something, and a flexible Terminator-wannabe human who somehow managed to stay _right_ on my ass.

"Isabella Cameron, you need to stop! We don't wanna hurt you, but I have orders to bring you in!" The man sounded barely even winded!

"Leave...me a-alone already!" I shouted over my shoulder, ducking through a warehouse and taking off down different halls in a side portion of the building. I slammed doors behind me, knocked things over, and broke through the unlocked door on the other side, racing to the next warehouse. _How am I gonna get them to leave me alone?_ Any amusement I felt faded as the pain overtook my body.

I felt ready to collapse any moment. I couldn't breathe anymore, and I was starting to get dizzier and dizzier. I didn't know if I'd lost Will or Ironhide. I couldn't see or hear either, but I wasn't thinking all that clearly, either, by this point.

My logical part of my mind was beginning to believe that maybe...just maybe this _was_ all real. I mean, didn't people of our world always say to expect the unexpected? Or that no one knew _what_ was really possible in our universe? For all I knew, this happened before, with other people. We might not have had proof of it to show it existed, but that didn't mean it wasn't real.

But for me to fall into a fictional fandom? One that had _no_ basis in reality? It just _felt_ impossible.

Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. I ran through several warehouses, and I couldn't tell if I'd lost my tailers, but I couldn't keep going, either. My legs finally gave out, and I collapsed on the ground. I panted, struggling to pull air in as I tried to think clearly.

_Even if I was in the movie-verse, which is still pretty much impossible... It's all wrong! Will and the Autobots should be locked up, pending questioning by higher up officials. Then they should be negotiating about NEST! They shouldn't be roaming the streets so early and easily._

_And what happened with Barricade?_ My eyes narrowed. _Didn't Bee kick his aft? How was he standing and fighting so well so soon?_ It was all out of whack. _And the Ferrari. That could only be one mech, but he shouldn't _be_ here so soon! If he wasn't even in the movie set two years after, what's he doing here _now_, before even his brother?_

Shaking my head, I panted heavily. My vision was slowly clearing, but the pain was only getting worse, mainly in my head. My vision continued to spin, but I looked up at the sounds of vehicles nearby, tensing, ready to run. Spotting the highway, I felt like God was finally starting to see things my way.

Glancing to my side, I found myself still amazingly clinging to my purse, and I painfully dragged it over. My hand had bled all over my wrist and arm, streaks of blood making them known on my formerly pale pink top, and running down the straps of the purse. Ignoring that, I frantically dug through the purse, immediately taking notice of what I'd lost.

First and foremost? My cell phone, and the Transformers shirts and buckle. Luckily, my bus pass still in the purse, and the first thing I did was dig it out, before shakily standing, and stumbling over towards the final warehouse.

There was a small stretch of desert sand before the highway, and as I glanced down it, I could make out several busses heading this way.

"If I have to..." I winced and wheezed, spotting the cars as they moved closer. "Run..." I began forward, my legs shaking dangerously with every step. I could feel my strength waning, but I had to get to those busses. Still, as slow as I was moving, I was moving.

I headed to the stretched of desert, pushing myself into an unsteady shamble. I began through the sand, my feet sliding more than once. My vision went blurry, and I paused, shaking my head. That didn't help, either. My vision only seemed to get worse, but I struggled to ignore it as I pushed on. The only thought on my mind was getting to the safety of my home. Getting away from all this blatant insanity.

I was...starting to believe this all_ might_ be real.

But I couldn't explain _how_, which was what made it so bad! It just wasn't _logical_! _Rational_! I paused, about halfway across the stretched, and snorted painfully on the urge to laugh. _Oh sweet Primus! Prowl would glitch and never recover!_ Then I sobered. _So what... Is he here too? Is there more messed up with this universe than I thought?_

Then again, just because he wasn't in the second movie, didn't mean he wasn't on Earth. There was only so much one lone bot could do, especially when his allies didn't even know he was there. There could have been any number of reasons he was there and in hiding.

First and foremost, his brother was the single most important bot to him. If he wasn't reported with the bots, maybe _he_ was out looking for him. Or maybe he was hiding, not wanting the others to know he was there until he found him.

Or maybe it was something all together different.

Despite being the bot I was thinking about, as vain and cocky as he was, I just couldn't see him hiding from the others and refusing to be found. It just didn't make sense!

Then again, none of this made sense.

Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath. I was really starting to feel the heat by now. My head hurt ten times worse than before, feeling for all the world like a Cybertronian-sized migraine. I was sweating, covered with stinging, aching wounds, with muscles that felt like my limbs were about to fall off.

'Ouch' would be the understatement of the century.

The busses were so close, but so far. They were only feet away, but I couldn't move. It took all I had just to remain _standing_ for Christ sake! I stared at the busses as they pulled down the street. Then my eyes turned to the bus stop, and I felt them narrow when I noticed people staring and pointing at me.

_Wow. They see a girl who looks like shit, and apparently can't move, and all they do is stop and stare? I feel so loved._ The sarcastic thought gave me a hint of ease, and I sighed, moving one step forward. My toe caught in the sand, however, and I stumbled, gasping as my legs visibly trembled.

Then, something flashed out of the corner of my eye. I wasn't sure if I could even remain standing, if I turned my head, but I tried and somehow succeeded. What I saw, however, had me collapsing to my knees, not at all sure _how_ I should be feeling.

The bright yellow glinted in the sun. For a long moment, I wished it was Bumblebee I was looking at. He was a nice, gentle giant, in the very real sense. Or maybe even Ratchet. I'd take the bitching and whining, if he could make the pain stop. But no, it was none of the above.

The yellow Ferrari roard off the road way, causing people to jump out of it's way. It sped towards me, and I hastily raised a hand to protect my face when it squealed to a sliding stop just milimeters from hitting me with it's passenger side door.

Then, as if a second thought, it sped forward a couple of inches, before the door swung open.

"Rules be slagged! Get in, or I'll pull you in myself! And don't make a mess in my interior!" The voice was familiar, but only because I'd heard it before.

I rolled my eyes, barely resisting the nearly urge to laugh as I stumbled into the passenger seat, and felt it shuddering violently underneath me. "As you wish, almighty one. Aren't you gonna give me the 'Damn! I'm good!' line?" Then I paused and nearly literally planted my face into the driver seat, even as the car jolted and I heard the engine rev as it sped off. "Oh wait, wrong twin."

The car seemed to jolt, and I frowned, realizing I might have just spoke a little too much with _this_ particular bot.

"Fragging femme, I want answers! You _will_ give them to me, or slag the 'no harming humans' rule!"

"You got it, Sunny!" I mock saluted him, before collapsing in the seat. The last thing I heard, before my world spiraled to black, was the oh-so-familiar statement, shouted so loudly, I think all of Canada heard him. Considering we were in the States, that's saying something.

"DON'T CALL ME THAT!"

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_You know the stories where Sunny is really impatient? Yeah, well, they _really_ understated the issue! I don't know how long I was out, only that darkness seems to equal bliss. Then I remember pain and bright light, and sand slipping up my nose until I started to sneeze, which hurt...pretty much everything._

_I remember looking up at the big bot glowering down at me, screaming in both Cybertronian and English alike. Half the questions flew right over my head. The rest bounced around in my head before disappearing into nothingness as I just _stared_ at him._

_After a _really_ long moment, he just stopped screaming and stared right back down at me. Then he started to look all over himself, muttering about scratches on his paint, and then hissing about oily smears on him and my 'disguting organic fluids', glaring down at me every once in a while._

_It wasn't that though. I was staring at him in silence because he looked, well...surprisingly like I imagined._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : July 25, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	8. Sunstreaker

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**WARNING** : CAUTION! If you don't want to know jack squat about the third Transformers movie, do not read the Diary Entry below! SPOILER ALERT! And no, I have not seen the movie (no slag, it's not out yet), but I HAVE seen videos of them _filming_ the third movie, which is where I got the altered alt modes.

Um, actually, beware in general. I have a lot of references to the third movie in this story. Mainly along the lines of the newer alt modes, and that _something_ happens to Mikeala.

Oh yeah, I noticed that I actually had Bella repeating her telling Optimus what's coming in multiple chapters (That's, uh...some time down the road, though), so I've gone through and quickly changed bits here and there to help with that. Hopefully I fixed the issue. -.-' LOL

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_We just...stared at each other. It was almost kind of funny. I stared at him more or less because I'd never imagined in my wildest dreams that Autobots could be real, and he stared because...well...he had a squishy human femme staring at him like she'd never imagined in her wildest dreams that Autobots could be real._

_I wanted to squeal, I wanted to puke, and I wanted to faint. All rolled into one._

_But more than anything, I found myself laughing. Not at the ever increasing alarm on his face, as he continuously checked his body, looking for what had me staring like a blind, deaf and dumb mute, but because my mind was on the movies of...well..._my_ world._

_Hey, it's not my fault Bay at least got the make right! For once in his life, even if unknowingly, he did it right! It was a lit better than the speculated green and white minty-looking Ratch-mobile, or the topless Sideswipe, for that matter._

_Anyways... Here I am, having a fit of near hysteria, and there Sunstreaker is, eyeing the road like it's the single most beautiful thing he'd ever seen._

_Then I sobered realizing...I'd just been kidnapped by a bot with no patience or social skills what so ever, when it came to humans. One wrong word and he'd leave me out in the desert to fend for my self. One wrong look, and he'd probably drop me off the nearest cliff, head first. One wrong smell and he was likely to boot me and squeal like a femme all the way back to the nearest town and car wash._

_Was it bad the mental image had me laughing my ass off all over again?_

_Oh, I was so in for it!_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

My eyes roamed over his form, and I shook my head. Bad idea when you've sustained recent injuries to that part of your body. My normal near-migrain had suddenly flared up into a full grown 'Talk to me and die' kind of migraine.

Great.

And Sunstreaker could evidently care less that I was in a whole world of pain.

"Eww! You got... You got..._oils_ and _bodily_ _secretions_ in me!" His voice was deep, but the whining had me imagining him jumping around gaily, waving his hands and acting like a little girl. Not to mention, I actually _checked_, wondering if I'd had soiled myself or something inside of him, with his wording. Luckily that wasn't the case, however. Can I just say 'ew'? "Disgusting!" He shuddered, before growling angrily. "Alright human, answer my questions! I know you know about our kind! I hacked into your pathetically primitive 'Worldwide Web'! You will talk, or I'll squish you like the weak little insect you are!"

I would have called him on his obvious bluff except when I looked up...he wasn't bluffing. His optics were narrowed angrily, and his engine revved just as angrily, and if I wasn't so weak, I probably would have taken off like I did with Ironhide. As it was, I squeaked embarrassingly. "What about that 'no harming humans' rule Optimus has?"

He'd been bending down, holding a single digit pointing down at me, and being far too obvious and dramatic about the squishing me thing, when he froze at my words. "How do you know of Prime?"

"I know a lot!" I backed away a bit, hissing as sand scraped painfully against my raw skin, and got into my cuts. "I know about a lot of bots in the area! On Earth!" I thought about the timeline. "Um...might be showing up on Earth...soon?" I wasn't too sure about that last part, unfortunately.

And yeah, if I didn't mention it before, things were definitely different this time around, so I had no idea what was coming, or when.

"I've been on this mudball planet for three of your Earth months." His optics narrowed and he pulled his hand back, crouching and glowering at me. "My internal and long range sensors and communications arrays are damaged beyond self-repair, as are my short range communications and locator beacons. My navigation array has also been damaged and deemed unreliable. If my allies are here, the message said to come to this...'State' and yet, I can't find them. Are you Mikeala Banes or Maggie Madsen?"

I frowned and sat back. I was about to shake my head, when I caught myself. "No. Look, I know you hate humans-"

"Don't presume to know me at all, fleshbag." His optics narrowed dangerously.

Sighing, I stared at him a long moment, still incredibly nervous. "But I do." He leaned forward, bracing himself on the sand next to him, and it hit me then that we were out quite literally...in the middle of nowhere. There were no roads to be seen for miles. Or mountain ranges for that matter. And here I was, being menacingly towered over by a giant alien robot. _And yeah, I shoulda kept my mouth shut._

There was a low growl. "I don't have time to waste with you human. I have questions, first and foremost being, where are the others?"

"They're-Wait." My head hurt. Did I ever mention my head _really_ hurt? "What will you do with me, if I tell you?"

"I won't end your pathetic existence."

"Not good enough." _Did I really just say that?_ Swallowing thickly, I leaned back, cowering away from him as he leaned closer, snarling.

"You don't have a choice."

"I... I..."

"I have better things to be doing. Like scrubbing your stink and fuids from my interior." He grimaced and moved back suddenly, standing, and I could have face planted in the sand at his wording. Couldn't he just _call_ it _blood_, for crying out loud? "If you will not answer my questions, then you are of no use to me." Turning, he began walking off, quickly transforming.

My mind worked like lightning, bouncing around quickly, hitting on all kinds of things that would make him stay, but it never hit the same topic twice, or lingered long enough for my mouth to spew any of the thoughts circling in my mind. Even as his engine revved and he started to speed off, there was only one thing that came to mind.

"Sideswipe!" And no, I wasn't calling Sunny by the wrong name. I was just using what I knew would make him stop cold, and it worked like a charm.

The car squealed to a stop I didn't think was possible, before pulling the tightest, most graceful U-turn I'd everseen. Quickly, he transformed back and strolled over and it hit me then...he didn't have wheeled feet. He looked identical to Sideswipe, but with softer edges, and no wheels. "What did you just say?" It wasn't a question, it was a demand, and he was crouching over me dangerously again.

My head began to spin, and my mind clouded over. I breathed harshly, everything hurting, spinning. "I do know...at least a little about you. You're Sunstreaker, Sideswipe's twin. If I'm right, he's not on Earth yet, but he'll arrive in the next two years." I spoke quickly, but I think I was slurring. It was _so_ hard to think straight!

"Where? Tell me where, human!" The growl was dangerous, angry, and he slammed a fist into the ground so close, I was sent flying with a startled scream.

My body hit something hard that wrapped around me lightning fast, and it hit me he was gripping me. He squeezed. Maybe he wasn't accustomed to holding humans, or maybe he was meaning to hurt me, but either way I couldn't breathe. I gasped, tapping his metallic index finger with my palm as I gasped, my eyes wide. My vision was impossible to make out by now, and my ears began to ring.

"Speak, fleshbag! Tell me where he'll be!"

"With...the A-Aut..." I gasped painfully. "I c-can't... I can't b-b-breath...!"

"Breathing is unnecessary!"

_Not to me! _I wanted to scream, but my lungs refused to cooperate.

"Where will my brother be?" The viscious snarl made me vaguely rethink the fact that he wouldn't hurt me. It certainly seemed that the 'no harming humans' rule meant little to nothing to him, my being unable to breathe being the main factor.

"P-Please..." My vision was turning dark, blurring, and the buzzing in my ears began to move through my body, making me weaker than before. "Y-You're h... Y-You're hurting...me...!"

He paused a moment, as if trying to understand the plain English I was speaking, then he loosened his grip, and I suddenly found myself air born, too breathless to even gasp. Just as I thought I was going to slam into the ground, and quite possibly _die_, I was caught on another hard surface, which surprisingly gave.

There was a deep growl as I gasped for breath. "Humans are so fragging fragile! The data packet I got stated we've allied with them, I can't understand why Prime would be so foolish!"

It took me a moment to catch my breath, and it seemed the sudden rush of oxygen boosted the adrenaline rushing through my system, because things were suddenly all too clear. "Hey!" My head still spun, and I slammed my eyes shut. "I-It was a _h-human_ who...offlined Megatron, y-you twit!" Terrified as I was, I was also in pain, and starting to get pissed off at his attitude. As I breathed deeply, gratefully, speaking became easier again. "And it...w-was a _h-human_, no... It w-was a _bunch of...humans_ who took out B-B-Blackout!" I took a deep breath and held it a moment, before letting it out slowly, my heart still doing the jig in my chest. "A-And helped...take out several other D-Decepticons!"

"And yet _you_ are so weak." There was no hiding the disdain in his voice.

"And you're a vain, cocky, pain in the aft most bots only tolerate." That came out relatively stutter free, and I was proud of myself for the tiny bit of control I'd gathered back. Peeking an eye open, I could make out his face, blurry, as his optics widened. "The only living being you even care about, besides your own aft, is your twin. Got it. You don't wanna help me..." Suddenly, I smirked, feeling oddly calm. "Fine. Let me down. I'll walk to town, and take _all_ my knowledge with me. The location of the Autobots. Their human allies. Who should be on Earth now. What happened in the battle. What happened to the Allspark. Your _brother_."

He growled angrily, and I could feel his hand closing over me again, but this time, he only squeezed lightly. His entire arm trembled, though, like he was resisting with all his might the urge to crush me like the bug he obviously thought I was.

"You think you can order me around, squishy?" His tone was deadly.

Letting my eyes narrow, I opened them a tiny bit, and peered up at him. My head was clearing, but I still felt weak, shaky and like comparative slag. "Not order. I'd...honestly, Sun-streaker-" I barely caught myself before calling him 'Sunny' and made a mental note to watch myself carefully. "I'd never even dream about ordering an Autobot around. Think of it more as a compromise. If you can protect one _slimy_-" I grinned as he groaned in disgust. "-little squishy from the Decepticons-" His optics brightened and hardened. "Then I'll tell you anything you want to know."

"What makes you think I won't ask the one question that will give me all the answers, and then leave you to the Decepti-creeps?"

"Are you a mech of honor, no matter _what_ species you barter with?" My words were shaky. I couldn't remember if he was, or if he'd just use any means to reach an end he wanted. I _think_ he was the honorable type, but...even as he glowered at me, my mind was second guessing that idea.

And boy! Was he glowering!

"You expect me to make a deal with a human? An _organic_? I refuse! I will not allow more slime and bodily-"

"Pit, Sunstreaker, it's called _blood_! It's the human version of energon, get it?" Snapping probably wasn't the best thing to do, but I really felt like slag. "I'm hurt! Probably pretty badly!" He opened his mouth, and I pointed a finger at him, glowering right back. "Interrupt me and, injured or not, I'll strip your engine of energon lines while you recharge!" Not that I knew where to find them.

He smirked and I knew he was calling my bluff.

So I did one better. "Fine! I'll strip your spark plugs, and pour sand in some of the most intimate inner workings of your engine!" _That_, I could do, and something in my voice must have made him wonder, because his smirk disappeared. Then it was _my_ turn to smirk as one of the most obvious forms of revenge hit me. "I'll strip your paint in spots, and then cover you with multi-colored stripes and flowers, with a custom made bumper sticker that says 'I shagged Barricade and all I got was this lousy bumper sticker'! And _then _I'll tell Prime you injured a human!" If he was smirking before, his optics had widened to a whole new level at this point, a disturbingly unknown emotion flitting across his facial features briefly, before he masked them again.

"What do you want?"

"Me? Mainly? A normal, peaceful life." He rolled his optics, and I could just _hear_ the 'Don't we all' roaming through his processor. "Look. I just wanna go home. I have money saved up. If you can give me a few days to heal at home, keep all...unwanted visitors away-"

"I am not acting as a..." His optics dimmed.

I sighed. "A bitch?" When he jolted slightly, I raised an eyebrow. "A slave? A guard dog? No, that's not what I'm asking. There are only two people I wanna see, and I know you can hack into pretty much anything. I give you their descriptions, and you hack into my cell phone. Call me if anyone unusual approaches, so I can get away. Some of them, if Barricade was any indication, will likely be Decepticons in disguise."

His optics narrowed, dimming now and then. I could only assume he was looking something up online as I spoke, and I was really relieved to see he didn't outright refuse me.

"And for your plan, you will have to ride within me?" There was disgust in his tone.

It was my turn to roll my eyes. "Just back to town. Then you don't have to offer me a ride again." I tried to move from his palm, and groaned as my head spun. "I'm _really_ hurt. Damn. I just... I just need to get home. Rest." Hospitals were a bad idea. Too many questions, and too many people. "Have some time to heal and gather my money and make plans. Then I'll need a ride out of the State." I couldn't even believe I was contemplating running for my life, but if they all wanted me... What kind of life would I have here?

The Autobots probably wouldn't trust me, and I didn't look forward to being a scientific anomaly in the eyes of the human government, experimented on. My mind shot to Bumblebee and I shuddered in Sunstreaker's palm.

"Did you know... The humans, before realizing the Autobots were the good guys, managed to capture Bumblebee, and hurt him a lot?" I could feel Sunstreaker's hand spasm. "I know that he's another bot you care about, though I don't know how much, or how much you show it. Simmons was behind it. Everything's ok now, but you might want to watch out. In my w-" I paused, realizing I still had no idea how I got here. _Was_ this my world?

Shaking my head gently, I hissed and carefully pushed myself up, trying to ignore the pain in my entire body that nearly wrenched a frustrated and agonized sob from my throat. "Where I come from, there are..." I couldn't say 'fanfictions', he'd never take me seriously if he Googled it and realized it generally meant _fictional_ stories. "There are..._rumors_ that humans are out looking for the bots. Bad humans, with the power to seriously hurt them."

Tilting my head back, I stared at Sunstreaker, my annoyance fading just a little. "There's a really good chance it's _just_ a rumor. Just...be careful. You'll have the time, look up everything you might think you need to know. Hide yourself well, ok? You... I have a bad feeling you might be in more danger than the others." How was I going to explain it?

His optics narrowed, and he tilted his head ever so slightly. It was shocking to see his expression had lightened since we really began to talk. He wasn't smiling, by any means, or even looking at me with remote sympathy or kindness, but gone were his deadly glowers. Instead, he stared at me with a cool indifference. "I am one of the best Jet Judo fighters around. I can take care of myself, squishy. Especially against-"

"Humans took out Megatron." I reminded him firmly, my gaze hardening.

He paused, his optics spinning. He glanced away for a long time, before glancing back. "Then let us go. The sooner we get this ridiculous farce over with, the sooner I get my information, and the sooner I can be done with you, squishy."

He placed me on the ground. Well, it was more like he put his hand inches from the ground and tilted it so I rolled off and landed painfully in the sand. Even as I sat there, groaning and actually sobbing in pain and exhaustion, he transformed down and sat next to me, his driver side door open.

I looked up at the car. The nice leather interior, and inside of me, a small part felt bad that I was going to mess it up inside.

Then I smirked, crawling over and tumbling onto the floor at the base of the seat, curling up.

_He deserves it for being such an aft._

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Ever heard a mech squeal?_

_Ever heard a manly mech squeal like a little girl?_

_Want to?_

_Just take Sunstreaker's gorgeous leather interior, and add a sweaty, bleeding, sandy human whose more serious injuries were starting to spew off-colored pus from forming infections. I'd never heard Sunstreaker squeal so high pitched -I think I could hear all the dogs of Tranquility barking from here, and it didn't help he was bitching me out in the same high pitched tone- and for a long moment, I began to wonder if stories about him really being a femme in disguise might...just be true._

_Of course, I didn't dare laugh, or verbally express that thought. I don't think there _is_ a faster way to volunteer for the Autobot punting league. As the ball._

_Still, it was an amusing thought. One that stuck with me the entire trip back to my place._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : July 27, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	9. The Story

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_When I got home, I'll admit I didn't so much as offer one word to the Ferrari, for his reluctant and whiny help. I got out when his door swung open with a gusto, and stalked back to my apartment. It didn't even hit me until I looked through my purse that I'd lost my keys. And that's about when I thought I _would_ lose my mind._

_Then I spotted them hanging off the door knob, covered in rain droplets._

_It was a little freaky they were there, but maybe the Autobots were doing me a hint of a favor. If my keys were here, I could go inside and relax._

_Then it hit me, so could they._

_I admit I shook like a leaf, terror running through me again. I saw the keys, and all I could think about was the fact they probably bugged every inch of my house. Then another thought hit me; I didn't even have my cell, so how was Sunstreaker supposed to contact me? If I went to get another one, they'd just trace that number, hacking into the call._

_And yeah, as selfish as it seemed, I didn't want Sunstreaker to know they were so close just yet. I felt bad, guilty, like I was stealing his home from him, but honestly... I was afraid. I was afraid he'd leave, and I'm pretty sure we all know he'd zoom out of here at the speed of light, and I'd be vulnerable to the Decepticons, or the Autobots who wanted to lock me up._

_More than anything, I feared being locked away in a cage, like an animal, for knowing what I knew, and _both_ sides had made their intent all too clear. Sunstreaker was a safe neutral, and as long as we didn't run into any bots, I knew he'd keep his end of the bargain. I just... I just _knew_ it!_

_And with that courage, I finally entered my home. The first thing I did was check in every possible knook and cranny, despite my pain, for bugs. Nothing _seemed_ out of place, but I'd have to watch myself. I got cleaned up, actually having to bite a wash cloth -yes, a _clean_ one- as I disinfected my injuries. Then I showered and bandaged my injuries, taking some advil for the pain._

_I didn't even know if I was going to get to sleep tonight. Not after all this. But I was going to try and see._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**(Next Day)**

To say I was surprised would be an understatement. When I woke up late the next morning, ignoring my ringing home phone -they didn't need to know I was home just yet- the first thing I found myself doing, almost out of some new instinct, was looking outside. I was fairly certain I'd see nothing out of the ordinary out there.

Some part of my mind still struggled to believe all of this was some crazy dream. The agony I was in was testament on it's own that something was horribly wrong. It almost felt worse today. My head spun badly enough that I could barely stand up straight, and I leaned against the window. I _knew_ it wasn't a dream, but I desperately wanted to believe it was. Autobots just didn't suddenly burst into existence. They didn't go from fictional to way beyond real.

So right now, for more reasons than I cared to count, I should _not_ have been looking at a Sunny -Ironic, isn't it?- yellow Ferrari parked in the same spot as I could only guess he took last night. His car form still had the occasional droplet of rain, and holographic, as I assumed that human form of his was, Sunny was crouched next to his hood, examining the rain droplets intently.

I shouldn't have been surprised. Rain was probably one of few things that wouldn't bother him. It'd clean pretty much anything off his alt mode, saving him the trouble later on. But what _really_ got me was that he was _still_ there! He could have gone anywhere.

Once again, the guilt hit. He was keeping up his end of the bargain because he wanted the information _that_ badly. He wanted to find his people, his new home _that_ badly. He wanted to find _Sideswipe_ that badly. If I felt bad before, I felt lower than Screamer's intelligence level now. My plan to borrow Sunstreaker for my own purposes, though I was only just now figuring out that plan for what it really was, fled my mind.

Even as I watched, holographic Sunstreaker put a hand over his heart, a pained expression crossing his features. Then he stood, spinning towards me, eyes narrowing and a frighteningly hostile look in his eyes, before he made a dramatic show of opening the driver side door and climbing in, probably vanishing from view. I couldn't tell behing the tinted glass.

I startled, gasping. My heart pounded even harder than it already was through the pain. I kept watching though, expecting the car to suddenly take off and ditch me, but once again, it didn't.

Shaking my head, I turned and walked shakily into the bathroom. I felt horrible. Like slag and then some. I took a small handful of pain pills, too distracted to really think about what I was doing, and then brushed my teeth. I had no appetite this morning, and it only just really hit me I hadn't eaten for a few days.

Still, I shook my head, promising to eat later. First, I had something to take care of.

I brushed out my hair, before putting it up in a high ponytail. I grabbed my shoes and slipped them on, and mindful of my cuts and bruises, headed outside. I didn't see anyone outside or around the apartment building, but I know that didn't mean much. Walking over to the Ferrari, I sat on a block of cement near his front tire, inspecting the cursive of his name on his side.

"I... Thank you." The car remained silent. "I know this is next to impossible. Everything about me disgusts you." I looked away, a pain lancing through my chest. I hated that it bothered me that he hated humans, even though I _knew_ to expect it. When he was just a story, it was easier to handle, because you could imagine him however you wanted. Now that he was real... Wow, he was really real!

It made me wonder what the others thought and felt. Were we 'slimy' and 'oily' to them too? Disgusting? Weak? "Sideswipe isn't on Earth yet." The car seemed to jolt ever so slightly, before the driver side door opened and Sunstreaker's holo made a show of stepping out, sitting on the hood, not facing me.

"Where is he?" The voice was quieter, masculine, but no less cold.

"Right at this moment? I don't know. Listen, Sunstreaker..." I looked up at him and fell silent. For a moment, I really just admired his profile from the side. He was tall, easily six feet, with shaggy blonde hair and electric blue eyes that just drew you to them, despite the harshness of them. He was also lean, muscular, but almost still boyish in his looks. "There's a lot you need to know. Some of it you might consider important. The rest, probably not so much, but it will help fill in some of the blanks."

He shot me a look and raised an eyebrow pointedly. He didn't like me. Enough said.

_Confession time. Oh slag. Where's a Decepticon when you really need one?_ I mentally crossed my fingers, hoping I didn't just jinx us with that thought, before taking a deep breath. "I..." I froze then. I was accosted by an image of him leaving me, then being captured, and I shivered as fear pressed through me, cold and fierce.

"What has you so bothered now?"

I glanced up at him and saw his eyes narrowed. "Fear." I offered a shaky smile, but it deflated as he narrowed his eyes even more, something he seemed to like to do. He wasn't impressed, and he wasn't sympathetic. "Not of you." His look turned to a glower and I rolled my eyes. "I could fear you. If I didn't know everything I did, I'd probably run around around batshit crazy right about now. Trust me, I've fallen temptingly close more than once." His glower turned to a look of confusion. "I'm afraid of being locked up."

He grunted. _He_ grunted, not his holo. "I thought you said you knew of us. Then you would know the Autobots would never allow harm to come to any human. They're disturbingly fond of your weak, patheticly fragile race."

"But they might still lock me up." His gaze turned my way again, confused. "I know things." He gave me a 'so what?' look, and I sighed. "Sunstreaker, do you even know _how_ I know things? I've only ever met two bots. One was a Decepticon, probably hell bent on torturing me for all my information on the Autobots." His eyes narrowed slightly. "The other was an Autobot who spoke about me being suspicious. They'll want to lock me up, they might even hand me over to the human government who is more than capable of things that would...quite possibly make Megatron look like a saint."

He snorted back a small, rough laugh, but seemed to pause when he realized just how serious I was. "Humans _are _a destructive race."

"Not all of us. Not the ones out there who recycle and carpool to help prolongue our existence on Earth. Not those who fight to protect endangered species, or fight for help for rape and murder victims." I paused, as a thought hit me. "Not those who create art." I watched as his head tilted, and his gaze almost turned distant. "We're not all bad. Just like we're not all strong fighters. We're not so different from the Cybertronians in that respect." His head swivelled to me. "If we were ever in a war like yours, I'd be an Autobot, for sure."

"You're human."

His derogatory tone had me pausing, and I looked at the ground. It hit me then, I was not only off topic, I was trying to get him to see the good in humans. A pretty big waste of time when it came to Sunstreaker. "Let me tell you the story of _how_ I know everything I know about your kind, and see if you think I deserve to be locked up and tortured for it." I honestly didn't know anymore, but it sure didn't lessen the fear I felt at the thought.

It took me several moments to gather my thoughts, before I took a deep breath. It was warm out, and I was beginning to sweat, but luckily, the pain was beginning to lessen also. "I'm not from this world." Once again, his head shot to me, eyes narrowing, but now they filled with suspicion. "Or rather, I _am_, but I'm from another dimension, or something." The small bitter laugh that escaped me wasn't a surprise.

"Where I come from, Cybertron never existed. Neither did Autobots or Deceoticons. They were a make believe concept thought up by a human's imagination."

There was a scoff. "Humans can't possibly be _that_ creative."

Frowning, I stared at him. He seemed oblivious to the annoyed look for the longest moment. Then he glanced over, and blinked in surprise, before nearly growling, sliding off the hood to crouch and lean against the side of his alt mode. I took that as an indication to continue.

"You'd really be surprised. Anyways... Where I come from, you never existed. You were a movie. A cartoon series. A comic book. Your stories, your wars, they were just something to read and watch for enjoyment. I know of all of you because I used to enjoy watching those stories. There's even sites out on the worldwide web, where fans who enjoyed the show-" I gave him the explanation of the 'fans' I was talking about, before continuing.

"They'd write stories made up in their own minds. They'd borrow the caracters from the Transformers series and write their own stories. I'd read a lot of them, too, but now, along with the rest of the fandom, they're gone, and I'm the only human who seems to remember it. Suddenly, you're all real."

"I don't yet see why you'd feel fear over being 'locked up' over this." I didn't know if he was just 'putting up' with listening to me, or if he was really interested in the story.

I sighed. "I know about the war on Cybertron. I know about Megatron ordering the destruction of all the femmes and sparklings. Or at least the rumors about it. I know about the bond you and Sideswipe share, and just how close you are." Then I paused, making a face. "Actually, that last one's not entirely true. I know you're _close_, but stories generally varied on just how..._intimately_ close you might be." I didn't elaborate, even at his confused look.

His frown suddenly turned into an enlightened smirk anyways, and he smirked at me evilly. "I'll leave that for you to ponder, human. Continue your ridiculous story." He snorted and rolled his eyes. "Me, a fictional character? I bet I was damn good looking!"

"You were known for it." He looked honestly surprised, before covering it with his usual cold facade. "You were also known to be cocky, arrogant, rude, vain, a prankster particularly to some of the older bots like say...Ratchet and Ironhide?" He smirked briefly, eyes flashing. "And you and Sideswipe were known as the best at Jet Judo."

I could practically _see_ his ego inflating, so I sighed and turned away, fiddling with the hem of my jeans. It was really too hot today for jeans, but I felt oddly cool, so I wore them anyways. "My world, we're not really taught to believe in all this other universe thing. Anyways, my point is-" I ignored his muttered comment of 'finally'. "I know things. I know the rough location of the Autobot base, or rather...where it will be in oh, I'd say a year's time." That should give them time to talk and get everything sorted and move to Diego Garcia. "I also know what bots _should_ be arriving. I know their alternate forms, some of their weaknesses. I know their human allies and _their_ weaknesses." If you counted family as weaknesses, and in which case, I knew Decepticons would.

He paused then, eyes flashing again, and I noted a little nervously, was suddenly paying all too much attention to me.

"The Decepticons see me as a way to get to the Autobots, in ways they've never done so before. A way to hurt them, get back at them, and quite possibly defeat them for good." Some of the 'Cons were frightfully stupid. Others...not so much. And it was the 'others' that worried me. "At least, that's what I'm guessing. I can't figure out any other reason why they'd come after me. They said it was for my necklace, but I told them it's just a fake. And it is!" I grasped at the metal slightly.

His entire body tensed.

"The Autobots see me was a way to get information on the Decepticons, though I don't know _that_ much really. The stories focused on the Autobots and their human allies more than anything. They'd see me as an invaluable asset, but at the same time, they'll _probably_ realize the Decepticons will know this and come after me."

"How does this come to you believing they will lock you up?" Was it scary this was as close to a civilized conversation as we've had, yet?

"Prime can't afford to be lenient with humans who know too much. They've already lost Jazz, and almost lost Bumblebee." He winced. "Ironhide is paranoid, and I'm pretty sure he sees me as some sort of Decepticon spy, and Will, his uh human ally, looked at me the same way. The human government, if they find out how I got here, will want to probably experiment on me and torture me for more information. Not to mention, I have _very_ basic information on Cybertronian weapons, only the tiniest bit really, but some humans might see that worth abducting me for."

"So you're a liability as long as you remain free."

I froze. The casual way he spoke about it made me realize just how true it was, and... It made me realize just how big a mistake I might have just made, saying _anything_ to _anyone_. Now he probably wanted to turn me in to them as well! Great! Standing, I turned towards my house, my mind frantically making plans for escape, even as the raw terror nearly paralysed me on the spot.

"I need to go in. I have some...things I need to attend to." Then I paused, realizing I was about to break my word with Sunstreaker. Then I shook my head. _I already told him all I know. Sideswipe isn't on Earth yet, and I don't know where he is now. I've told him I've seen an Autobot in the area, and I think I even mentioned Ironhide, so he'll know to look in the area. I...told him enough._ I took a step forward, intending to walk inside, when a grasp on my arm caused me to jump and gasp, spinning in place.

Sunstreaker was staring at me surprisingly thoughtfully. "And all you want is your freedom. Is that why I am here? Your way of escape? Of freedom?" He cocked his head to the side, and somehow...I just knew he wasn't asking in hopes of an answer. "Very well. I agreed to your terms." His grip then tightened to borderline pain. "And I will fulfill them. I will protect you from Decepticon _and_ Autobot alike, until you are ready to leave. Then you will tell me _everything_ you know, and we will part ways. You will have your freedom, and I will have rid myself of a pesky, slimy squishy." He grimaced and pulled his hand back. "Without damaging my honor." He grimaced at his hand, like he'd just dug through a dumpster full of used diapers, before wiping it on his shirt.

For a long moment, all I could do was stare at him in shock. His action passed right over my head, I was so distracted. I couldn't believe he'd agreed to protect me, but I quickly nodded before he could take the words back. "I promise, I'll make our...physical contact as little as possible."

"Do." His tone was solid ice, and I shivered, suddenly feeling chilled. Almost immediately, his eyes flashed and I felt an odd tingling run through my body. "I have run a very basic medical scan." His frown seemed to deepen. "And your body is showing a lower internal temperature than what the worldwide web deems acceptable. Yet you are dressed, as information reads, rather warmly."

I shook my head. "I'm injured, and probably sick, too. It just means I'm chilled. I probably got sick from my injuries, or all the stress on my body lately. I'll be fine in a week or two, probably, but I should be good to leave Tranquility in maybe...three days?" I vaguely wondered if my family was still even _mine_ in any respect, or if they'd changed to. Either way, I couldn't take my issues to them.

I shifted a little, rubbing at my neck, and Sunstreaker's eyes flashed brightly. They landed on the shard thoughtfully, narrowing, and I felt another odd tingling, and his eyes widened in recognition. "Is that... That is a shard of the Allspark!" The shock and disbelief in his voice was immediately evident.

_Is that not what I just said? _"No!" I waved my hands, backing away quickly. "No, Sunn-streaker, it's a fake, from my world." I pulled my collar to the side, and hesitantly showed him my tattoo.

"That is why I followed you, initially. I believed you to be an Autobot supporter. It seems I made an error." He sneered, eyes flashing back to the shard. "Are you so certain it's fake? Perhaps it is what brought you here?" There was a grudging curiosity in his tone. He wanted to end the conversation, that was clear, but at the same time he couldn't help but ask.

"That's not possible."

Slowly, one of his eyebrows rose. "As impossible as giant alien robots, originally created by _squishy_ minds-" He snorted again, still clearly refusing to believe it. "-suddenly becoming real?"

Pausing, I took another step back. "I have plans to go see my best friend today. Her name's Rika. She, and my step-brother, Jeff are the only ones I want anywhere near me, and only because neither of them know about or believe in giant alien robots." He nodded. "I'll probably be gone for a while."

He seemed to think, eyeing the street longingly, glowering at the parking lot, and returning to me with an expression of reluctance. "I will follow you at a distance." He shrugged, like it was no big deal, but I knew better. This was his way of fulfilling his duty. "Simply let me know when you decide to leave." The tone was indifferent. Neither friendly or hostile. It just _was_. He was going, and he didn't seem to care about it either way. Or maybe he was secretly seething and just chose to hide the thought.

"You don't have to."

"In order to 'protect you, I will. I have also scanned and found no celular devices in your home." Again, his eyebrow raised. "How exactly did you plan to have me 'call' and warn you?"

_Shit. Trust him to call it like it is._ "You can't. I lost my phone running from Willian Lennox and Ironhide. I just...forgot about it."

Now both his eyebrows shot up. "_You_ outran an _Autobot_." His derogatory, incredulous tone made me want to roll my eyes, but I barely resisted.

"Not really. I outran a human, who incidentally slowed the Autobot down." Shrugging a little, I glanced away. "I ran to a small rocky outcrop and scrambled through the rocks is more like it. Will followed, so Ironhide couldn't to protect him." I coughed, nervously. "Not that I'd really thought about that at the time."

"Hmm... And if what you say is true, they will be watching for your general number, both landline and cell phone." It was amazing how quick he was picking up on things and adapting his speech to reflect it. It just went to show just _how_ superior their minds were. Turning away, the Ferrari door opened and he leaned in. I was about to turn and walk away when he emerged again, with something in his hand.

His eyes narrowed in displeasure and he hissed, before rigidly holding out his hand. "I cannot protect you if I cannot contact you. Do _not_ lose this, let any other squishies touch it, and I want it back when I leave!"

I nearly reared back at the venom in his voice, but agreed and quickly took the cell phone. It was small, yellow, and looked like any other cell phone out there, but when I flipped it open, the screen showed an Autobot insignia. I couldn't help but smile. Despite everything, this was all really rather...cool! "Thanks, Sunny!" I grimaced then and looked up, as his expression clouded over. His eyes flashed red, and I took a step back at the low snarl.

He glowered at me, and the Ferrari behind him actually trembled darkly. I actually feared for my safety, seeing him glare at me through inhumanly red eyes, but he snarled lowly and inhaled, holding his breath. He turned away, and seemed to focus a moment, before his eyes cleared.

"You have no right to use that designation, squish-bag." He hissed darkly, with a tight, controlled tone, his entire body rigid and shaking. He growled, then grimaced. "Now leave, before I change my mind about the 'cell phone'." Turning, he stalked back to the car and got in, before the door slammed shut all on it's own.

Standing there a long moment, I could only offer a small, sincere 'sorry' before turning and heading into the house. The day was just beginning, and I was already dreading what was to come.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Ever get the feeling you're being watched?_

_On my way across town, I stopped more than once and looked around. I had the overwhelming feeling like something was wrong, like I was being watched. I knew Sunstreaker was watching my every move like a hawk. I caught flashes of yellow, but amazingly, he stayed well out of sight._

_Which of course helped him stay well out of mind, as well._

_At least, as long as I could distract myself from anything remotely Cybertronian. Which wasn't long, all things considered. _

_By the time I got to Rika's house, I was starting to feel paranoid. Sunny parked down the street a ways, but I had the feeling like I was being watched from another direction, if that made any sense. More than once I tried to shake off the feeling, but it simply refused to fade._

_Note to self: Reconsider contacting a psychiatrist._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : July 28, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	10. Consequences

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Legend** :

"Speaking"

_Thoughts_

_"Cybertronian"_

_**"Internal Communications"**_

_**Lyrics/Text messages/Notes**_

**Flashback/Dream/Vision**

**(Scene/POV Changes)**

**

* * *

**

_Dear Diary,_

_Ever have one of those 'oh shit' days, when everything kinda catches up on you? Yeah, well this was one of those. Turns out Rika was contacted by the police stating I was apparently in 'great danger' and needed to let them know if she saw me. Officer's name? I'll give you three guesses, but you'll only need one._

_Do you know how hard it is to try to convince your best friend, the sister you never had, _not_ to call the crazy psycho bot over the moment I showed up? Especially considering I couldn't _tell_ her he was a crazy psycho bot? _

_At least she gave me the benefit of the doubt and didn't call him. That didn't mean I was off the hook however, apparently Foster was also by, escorted by a military detail and looking nervous as hell._

_I needed no other confirmation that both factions were after me. Nor what would most likely happen to me if I let them catch me. I just made sure Rika knew to tell them she'd never seen me. For her own sake. I told her I was leaving, not why. She threw a mega fit, of course, and then, of all the things for my mind to randomly come up with, I suddenly remember I missed my very important doctor's appointment!_

_And on top of it all, I felt ready to collapse. I was more exhausted than ever. I felt feverish, pained, head ready to explode. I think I made some vague comment to whatever higher power was looking down on me about killing me, because suddenly, I found a whole new set of demads on Rika's part. Mostly about what was wrong with me, and why we were talking when we could be on the way to the hospital._

_I almost protested, until I realized, I could be in, get a diagnosis, and be back out again before anyone alerted the police or military. And if anyone _did_ call the police, Sunstreaker could warn me ahead of time._

_I really appreciated his help, but that only added new problems. I found myself growing fond of his presence and snark, and could already feel the fear and pain at the thought of him being gone away. I mean, isn't it every fangirl's dream come true to have her favorite bot be her guardian, even if she's more or less forcing his hand? Not to mention, I'd really have to wrack my brain for every tidbit on Sideswipe's appearances on Earth for him, and hopefully, he'd find the info helpful._

_But anyways, one problem at a time._

_First...dealing with a nearly frantic Rika._

_...I'd much rather deal with Barricade._

_-Bella_

* * *

"Why didn't you tell me you were so sick?" She almost literally dragged me from the building, and I could only imagine the scene we must have presented as I stumbled along behind her.

Rolling my eyes, I glanced briefly down the street, relaxing ever so slightly to see Sunstreaker still parked down the street. Even as I glanced at him, his lights flashed, and I heard the 'start' of his engine. "Because I _wasn't_ this sick two days ago, and I can _walk_ Rika!" I tugged ony arm, and grumbled when she refused to release it until we got to the bus station. "It's not like I get some twisted thrill out of feeling like I'm gonna toss my cookies any minute."

Not that I felt nauseous. Right now, I felt more in pain than anything, but the pills helped dim it enough to function surprisingly normally, luckily. She only gave me an odd look, before rolling her eyes. Then she did a double take down the street.

"Isn't that the Ferrari?"

I blinked, and swallowed, completely at a loss for words. I turned and looked at the car, honestly not sure if I should tell her about it, proove Autobots are real, or just play it off as something else. Rika, after getting over the initial fear, would probably _love_ the twins and the bots in general. Still, it would also put her in danger, which was what primarily kept my mouth shut.

"Never mind. That's just...kinda creepy how it's everywhere we go." Then she sighed, giving me a dirty look. "Damn it, girl! You're rubbing off on me!"

"Honey, I haven't even begun to 'rub off'' on you." I waggled my eyebrows and stepped closer, earning some rather startled looks from a few men at the bus stop, before they grinned almost eagerly. I pointed them out to her discreetly, and we both busted up laughing, until I had to lean against the shelter, my head spinning once again. "Oh, owie." Pouting, I rubbed at my temples. "My head hasn't stopped hurting since the accident."

"That's not good. I thought it was just a concussion...?"

I looked her in the eyes, and sighed heavily. "I'm not sure about much of anything, anymore." I told her bluntly, grabbing my pass as the bus approached. I was about to climb aboard, once again recognizing the odd blue and red form, when my cell vibrated startlingly urgently, and I paused, pulling it out.

_**Cybertronian signature. Scanners damaged, unable to recognize Autobot or Decepticon. - S**_

Staring up at the bus, my eyes scanned it. People climbed on ahead of me, but Rika was eyeing me worriedly. My eyes searched carefully along the advertisements posted on the side. The numbers along the top of the front window, I even moved to the front to take a good look there.

And right at the center of the front, there it was. The same symbol I'd seen inside the bus before. The one that vanished as quickly as I noticed it.

Shaking my head, I stepped back and into the shelter, hoping and praying he wouldn't reveal himself with innocent human beings not only around him, but inside.

"Bella?"

"I don't...feel comfortable taking that bus." I eyed the driver, who wasn't wearing sunglasses this time. He was a beautiful man for his age, very strong looking, but his eyes, though wary, were kind. They were also very _blue_, and I nodded to myself. _What bot uses red and blue paint, and takes such large forms?_ The answer was immediate. Raising an eyebrow, I blinked in surprise as it all fit into place in my mind. "Optimus Prime."

The driver startled, and the bus lurched slightly, even as the last person grabbed a seat inside.

Rika leaned next to me, eyeing the bus in confusion. "Since when did this happen? You seemed to be getting more comfortable on busses. Does this have anything to do with Casey Barr? Or Foster?"

"Casey Barr is a fake name." I wondered if Optimus could hear me. Somehow, I felt like I should be more worried, but I just felt so _tired._ Staring into his eyes, I didn't feel fear. Just a numb weariness. "His real designation is Barricade." If Optimus could hear me, he'd know to look for records to that name. If not, well I could probably give Rika the 'terrorist' excuse.

After all, if it worked for the government and hiding the mission city incident, why couldn't it work for me, Rika, and one man-er...mech?

Optimus' eyes narrowed, and he stared at me thoughtfully a long moment. People began to look around on the bus, and I could have sworn I heard one of them call to the driver. Abruptly, his eyes turned away, flashing around him, before he almost reluctantly reached over and closed the door. He shot me one more confused and wary look, before he pulled off the curb and began driving off, slower than anyone would have expected.

"Wow, what was that about?" Rika was watching the bus with confusion, before shaking her head and turning to me. "Who the hell names their kid 'Barricade'?"

"A terrorist, or so I hear." I shrugged, before shakily putting together a story. "I, um... You remember that picture I took of the Ferrari right before the accident?" I wanted to cringe, that right there would be a big issue with the story. I still didn't know what really happened as far as _that_ was concerned. Either way, I pushed on. I desperately needed her to stay out of Autobot business. The last thing I needed was for this to turn into someone's all too imaginative fanfiction, where the best friend gets abducted and tortured, and the original character ended up a hero or martyr trying to rescue them.

Though...the idea kind of sounded cool.

Shaking off the thought, I sighed. "Well apparently I caught some business in the background, and they know it. Something about an insider at the police who hacked the system and stole copies of the pictures. Now...I guess they either want whatever information they _think_ I have-" Hey, that was actually being pretty honest! "Or they want to silence me."

"And the police?"

"One of them is an insider. I can't trust anyone. It's either Casey Barr, or 'Barricade' as a lot of people, um, apparently call him, or Officer Foster." I hated putting Foster into all this, and part of me wondered what he was already _doing_ being part of it. Had he come across an Autobot or Decepticon by accident? Was he a pretender? An Autobot in disguise?

No, that wasn't possible. If he was travelling with Lennox, he'd be using Ironhide as a mode of transport. Not to mention, if he was a bot, he could only be Prowl, who didn't strike me as the kind of guy to be...well...Foster. For one thing, if Prowl had a holographic form, I'd have to suspect it would be older, for one.

"So you're being hunted by terrorists?" Her words were a disbelieving hiss. "Seriously. First, Autobots and Decepticons, and now this?"

"Except _this_ is logical and rational." _Damn, I'm channeling Prowl! Next thing you know, my head will start smoking, and I'll glitch out._ I choked on a laugh, as I thought about my migraine. _Actually, I might be closer than I even know..._ "Anyways, I got a text message from a friend, with connections, who warned me the bus driver might be in on it all."

"Wait, someone's _feeding_ this ridiculous delusion?"

With a growl, I spun to Rika, and raised my shirt to just below my chest. I showed her the seatbelt burns. The scrapes and bruises were next. "No, I got these digging out my garden!" Rolling my eyes, I traced the belt bruise. "What does this look like, Rika? My imagination? Did I imagine the seatbelt that kept me trapped in the cop car, until he was distracted and I managed to get away?"

She paused, looking at the marks. It was true. I had a seatbelt shaped bruise across my chest and stomach, and she couldn't call _that_ a delusion. Glancing up, her eyes darted past me and narrowed, and I let my shirt fall back down.

"And does it have anything to do with that Ferrari you were practically obssessing over before?" Her tone was strained.

"Is it my fault I know a sexy car when I see one?" I shrugged trying to play it off, but her eyes darkened and turned to me, silently demanding. I nodded. "Yes. He's an...undercover agent. He's kinda...agreed to be my protector until I can get my things together and get out of town." Huh, was it disturbing a lot of this story was actually fairly close to the truth?

"Bella..." She sighed, looking confused. "I don't know what to believe, but I'm _still_ taking you to the hospital!"

I smiled and nodded, feeling the warm phone in my hand. Looking down, I flipped it open and found the text message application, sending a quick 'Thanks' response to the only number in the contacts list. Then, after a brief hesitation, I added Rika's and Jeff's home and cell numbers as well. Just in case.

Hearing the roar of a powerful sport engine, I couldn't resist looking up, with a little shiver running up my spine. I wasn't a speed demon by any sense, but when you saw a sleek, sexy car, with a powerful engine, it was definitely enough to get the heart pumping just a little harder.

Sure enough, Sunstreaker pulled up in front of us, and opened the passenger door. His holographic form was there, activated, and all but glaring at me.

"I have better things to do than to sit here all day, waiting for your mode of transportation to arrive."

_Oh really? That's why you spent the night outside my apartment, sitting idly in that parking spot? That's why you insisted on coming with me?_ I raised an eyebrow, but kept my mouth shut.

"Get in and keep your slimy squishy hands to yourself. If you leave fingerprints, you'll be remaining behind to clean them!" His holographic form made a show of reaching over and flipping up the passenger seat so someone could slid into the extremely _tiny_ back seat.

"I didn't think cars like that _had_ back seats."

I grabbed Rika's hand and pulled her up, giving her a quick warning. "Don't talk to him. Don't talk back to him. He's very... Well he doesn't like dealing with people, and his car is his baby. He _means_ it, that if we leave prints, we're staying behind to clean them up." I really wasn't going to resist the offer of a car ride, especially when the fangirl part of me, _deep_ down inside squealed about the fact I'd once again be riding in the beautiful Ferrari.

Rika hesitated, giving me an odd look, before shaking her head. She climbed into the back seat as carefully as she could, and buckled up, before placing her hands in her lap. She looked for all the world like she wanted to say something, but was nearly physically restraining herself.

The seat popped back on it's own, with only a hint of a touch from Sunstreaker, and I climbed into the front seat, feeling as it squirmed underneath me. Looking over at him, I grit my teeth. "Cars don't _squirm_!" I hissed quietly, catching his disgusted expression.

The phone vibrated, even as the seat settled down, and the belt slid across my waist with a shudder.

_**You're slimy! Ewwww! -S**_

"No shit, sherlock. It's hot outside, and I've been sweating!" I made a show of typing on the phone, so Rika wouldn't think I was talking to myself, before settling back. The phone vibrated a moment later, and I nearly let my head hit the dash in front of me when I read the message.

_**Well stop! It's horribly disgusting! -S**_

_**And my designation is **_**not**_** 'Sherlock'! You would do well to remember that. -S**_

Despite everything, I started to laugh, letting my head -wet hair and all- hit the head rest behind me as I did so. My chest ached, and my head throbbed, but I couldn't help it. "It's not something I can turn off like a light switch!" I grumbled with a snort and more laughter, before typing on the phone right back to him.

The seat shuddered again, and I heard Sunstreaker mutter something about humans being disgusting, only to quiet down when I gave him a hard look and raised my _sandy_ foot, threatening to kick him with it. He glared at me. Oh _Primus_, did he glare! But at least he calmed down and turned forward, and I pulled my shoe off carefully, opening the window as he slowed at a light, and tapping the sand off my shoe, before quickly following suit with the other. If he could play nice, so could I.

When I glanced over, Sunstreaker was staring at me, frowning, but gone was the glare. He seemed to catch the action, and it was like my consideration surprised him. As quick as I caught him, however, he turned away scowling and turned off another street. All of a sudden, he went rigid; the car picked up speed, dodging around cars and nearly racing down the streets. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as we swerved frighteningly close to cars.

It was exhilarating and terrifying in one.

I figured he was just tired of obeying the speed laws, and was thankful I'd given Rika that story to cover his blatant speeding. However, I was about to find out just how wrong I was.

"Um..."

Looking over my shoulder, I raised an eyebrow at Rika, who was leaning forward, looking troubled. "Yeah?"

She frowned, and pointed behind her. "We've got a cop on our ass, and we just passed the turn off for the hospital." She looked around, as if to double check, just to be sure.

I followed her lead. First thing I noticed was we were nearing city limits. "Um, Sun-uh... Sunstreaker?" I'd have to think up a cover for his name later, but for now, I eyed the Ferrari with a growing sense of dread.

"I'm reading another Cybertronian signature, but this one is following us, and is also recognized as the same vehicular alternate form that captured and injured you earlier." His voice came from the dash, and his holographic form fizzled. "I need to conserve my energy levels." The human form disappeared in a flash, leaving the car literally driverless, and us stuck in the passenger and back seats.

"Bella! He just disappeared!"

"I know, Rika." I turned to look at her. "It's a really long story, but right now, remember that terrorist I told you about?" She nodded shakily, and I knew she was going to have my ass later. "Well he's not so much a terrorist as...well...a giant alien robot." I grimaced, and her eyes widened with alarm.

"Oh God, Bella! You let them talk you into all that?"

"What? No, it's true!"

I didn't have time to explain, though. Before I had a chance to get another word out of my mouth, I recognized the Cybertronian curse that escaped Sunstreaker, before suddenly, I was air born and listening to Rika scream. Even as I hit the ground, hard, I caught a sight of the Ferrari transforming and rushing the incoming Decepticon.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I didn't have brain damage yet. At least...not that I knew of, but if I kept getting thrown around like a rag doll, I'd be spending my 'golden years' wheeling around in a wheel chair with drool hanging out of the corner of my mouth._

_Don't get me wrong. Even in his own harsher, misguided way, I knew Sunstreaker was still living up to his end of our bargain, protecting me. Just...did he have to _throw_ me to do it? Barricade was bad enough, though he was a 'Con who didn't give two slags about human life, but... Well, ok, maybe it was just me._

_Speaking of Barricade, was Ironhide just in the business of knocking 'Cons around a little and letting them live, or was 'Cade just freakishly strong, even by Cybertronian standards? How did he get away from 'Hide of all bots, and come back the next day looking and fighting like knew?_

_Or maybe he just ran before he was seriously injured... Sounds like a Decepticon thing to do._

_Either way, as they dueled, Sunstreaker taking more hits than I cared to honestly admit, I couldn't help but wonder. He'd promised to protect _me_, but... What about Rika? And what if something happened to him because of it?_

_My heart felt like lead. My chest began to hurt more than my head._

_What if... What if _I'm_ the reason he wasn't in the second movie? What if, protecting me, he gets killed? What about the Autobots, they needed him! What about _Sideswipe_?_

_I was terrified, and watching them fight, I was only getting more so._

_What do I do?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : July 28, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	11. Game Over

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it. I do NOT own any reference to Science and Fiction by **Faecat**. I am only using a vague reference and move to help my OC deal with the Decepticon. Wire-pulling in general is not my thing.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I watched them fighting, growing more and more panicked. Even through the fog of all the pain I was in, and feeling dazed, I just... I couldn't just let Sunstreaker die, right? I might have been a human, but so was Sam, who bravely took on Megatron. So was Sam, who _died_ to bring Optimus back._

_So was Will, who took on Scorponok and Blackout! Who bravely led his troops into battle against the 'Cons! Even though he's a soldier who's trained for battle, and he didn't have much of a choice, and I'm not and do, and... Okay, _so_ not helping! __So... So... Oh, so was Mikeala Banes, who hotwired a truck to _save_ baby bot, and drove him into battle so he could help the others fight!_

_And were they scared? I could clearly remember Mikeala's face as she rested her head against the steering wheel, panting, shaking, struggling with something. I could make out Sam's terrified screams, how he ran from the bots at first. And what about Maggie, who helped the Secretary of Defence against that little spaz bot, Frenzy?_

_But then, fear or no fear, I also had another dilemma to deal with._

_Rika._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

"R-Rika stop!" I shook her as she panted, mumbling and shaking, staring at the bots in terror. She turned to me with wide eyes streaming tears. "I... I mean... Remember the...the movies?" Her eyes were glazed, but she nodded, and I nodded back equally as shakily. "They've s-somehow...well... They've b-become real." I blinked rapidly, trying to ignore my discomfort. "That's why...y-you didn't know them, that's...that's why the fandom disappeared."

I was getting dizzy, feeling sick and weak, but I couldn't -_couldn't_- let it take me down. Not right this moment. "This..." I hesitated. This wasn't easy, but it had to be said. This...was what I was guessing had happened. What I'd 'figured out' that made sense. I could have been wrong, but... "This...isn't my universe, my d-d-dimension. I'm...your f-friend, but I'm a different...version of her-" It was really the only explanation that made sense, and fit everything. "-and _they_-" I pointed to the bots, speaking as quickly and clearly as my aching head would allow me. "Are the movie b-bots I t-told you about." I put a hand to my head. I could feel my heartbeat in my skull, pounding angrily. "T-The yellow one is a good guy. The black a-and..." I had to look again, I couldn't remember if Barricade was all black, equal parts black and white, or what. "The other one... He's a b-bad guy." _Isn't he? Well, the fact he tried to botnap me has to mean something, but still..._

"We... Oh my God! Giant robots are _real_?" She looked from me to them. "We gotta run!"

But I couldn't move. I watched as Barricade hit Sunstreaker with a blast to the chest, and the yellow Ferrari went flying, landing on his back and barely moving. My heart screamed at me to help, but my mind screamed at me to run. Rika was pulling my arm, but my legs felt like rubber.

Just what was I supposed to do against a giant alien robot? What _could_ I do to damage him? I stared at his body as he moved, stalking closer to the bot and snarling at him in Cybertronian clicks and whistles. I watched the way his arms flexed, cables and cords sliding in and out under his armor, and my eyes narrowed.

"Bella! We need to _go_!"

A specific fanfiction, one of my favorites, came to mind. It was about a human girl who went into the Autobot universe, and she took down Decepticons by pulling franfically at anything she could find. Wires, cables, _anything_! The thought that made me pause, only for a second, was of the energon poisoning she suffered in return for her efforts.

But I couldn't just give up because of that.

"No!" I managed to get up. I could feel the fear pumping adrenaline through my body, but there was something else there too. Sideswipe's face flashed through my mind, and the memory of every story I'd ever read where one brother or the other was hurt, or dying, and the reaction of the other twin. "I can't leave!"

"But-"

"I gotta do _something_ to help!"

"What can you do against a _giant freakin robot_?" I'd never heard her voice so high pitched.

My eyes burned with tears, as I could imagine the thoughts and feeling roaring through Sideswipe's mind, if anything happened to Sunstreaker. _They love each other. They _really_ love each other!_ They were brothers no matter what, close, protective, and loving of each other. The good and the bad, they took it all.

Even seeing the raw defiance in Sunstreaker's face, as he hauled himself shakily to his feet, I stepped forward. _He'd do _anything_ for his brother! He'd die for him. Lie for him. Hell, he'd _kill_ for him!_ And I knew it was the same with me and Rika, though maybe to a slightly lesser extent, since _we_ weren't twins. She was my best friend, the sister I never had. We weren't joined at the hip, ninety-five percent of the time, but we were close. I held her dear to me, in my heart. I wanted to protect her from _this_ world, but at the same time, I wanted nothing more than to share it with her as well.

I began running.

"Bella, stop!"

Sunstreaker stood shakily, glaring at Barricade as the Decepticon inched closer, a roaring, glowing blaster on the end of his arm, aimed straight at the Autobot.

My heart pounded in my ears drowning everything out with a whine. I saw the cables in Barricade's foot and prayed I'd be strong enough to detach them. I reached his foot, and nearly stumbled. I knew they were big, but it never ceased to amaze -and frighten the hell out of me- at just _how_ big they were!

Still, I saw a cable slithering and reached out, grasping at it. I began to pull, trying to ignore the sounds around me. My heartbeat drowned a lot of it out though, which helped me focus. I pulled and pulled. I even braced my feet against his leg for better leverage.

Distantly, I could have sworn I heard a snarl, but it didn't phase me. My hands were sweating and slipping, so I gripped it even tighter, pulling as hard as I possibly good, whining with the effort. My shoulders began to hurt, and slowly, I was losing hope. What if I wasn't strong enough?

Just as I began to think I might not be strong enough to actually _help_, the cable gave with a sudden and startling pop. Warmth showered over me, and something metallic and sweet washed into my mouth. I choked, gasping and gagging, and I fell back, stunned. I think there was a yell, but my heart was still doing a pretty good job toning everything else out.

The _taste_ of the stuff in my mouth... Was that energon? It didn't burn going down, but it was thick, causing my throat to go gummy. I spat what I could out, wiping at my mouth and body to get as much of it off as I could, even as I stood. It was sweet, tangy, but also metallic like copper or blood.

Gagging, I moved back, and gasped sharply as I suddenly realized I was standing in shadow. Even as I looked up, I saw the foot bearing down on me and the way the large bot attached to it seemed to sway unsteadily in the air, and shouted, running to the side. Then, the foot was gone.

There was a loud boom of metal hitting metal loudly. Then the shadow was gone, and I was knocked down as the ground rocked harshly. Curling up, I coughed up more energon, realizing I was coated with it, and I looked up, to where Sunstreaker was repeatedly pounding Barricade in the face.

Almost of their own accord, my eyes trailed down to his ankle, and I gave a small satisfied smile to see the energon dripping steadily.

"Bella!"

I jumped, turning to Rika. Her eyes were wide as saucers and she gripped my arm, looking me over. "Eww! What _is_ that?" She held a shaking hand over a patch of energon that covered my necklace and chest. "Is... Is it... Robot blood?"

"I-It's energon." I coughed even more. My throat felt gummy and dry, like I'd just guzzled a bottle of lukewarm pepsi, and it made breathing even more difficult. "It's like their b-blood, but in a way...it's also their fuel. There's some...b-big complex t-t-thing about it all."

"They're _vampires_?" If possible, her voice just reached an even higher pitch. _"Vampire_ robots?"

"I don't know." I wiped at the energon, struggling to get it off me, and it was definitely disturbing to see the small area around me where the sand went dark from the fluid coming off me. Standing slowly, I began working on brushing the sand and goop off my legs. "Oh, this is gross!" I was a little worried, my mind split between the battle at hand -though I think that was over if Sunstreaker's triumphant grin as Barricade once again transformed and took off was anything to go by- and my entire body being coated in quite possibly _poisonous_ energon, and Rika.

I looked up, grimacing, swallowing and coughing again, as Sunstreaker turned to me, optics narrowed.

"I had him."

"Y-You were h-hurt."

"We had an agreement, squishy. I protected you. Not the other way around." His optics narrowed dangerously. "You put yourself in great danger, foolishly."

"And I'd do it again!" I snapped angrily, way beyond so not in the mood for his lectures. "I'd do it again to protect you!" He seemed to pause, before snarling. "And shut the frag up for a minute!" The snarling faded as quickly as it had started, causing Rika's jaw to drop in blatant disbelief that I'd just ordered a giant robot around, and he _listened_ to me. If only she knew... "I know you don't want or need humans protecting you, but Sunstreaker, you weren't _in_ the second movie! It's set for like...two years from now and you weren't in it!"

"And? What does _that_ have to do with anything?"

"Something happened to you, you dolt! Sideswipe was there, but he was alone!" He seemed to stiffen, but I could feel the absolute passion running through me. This was a sore topic for me, one I felt so passionate about. If this was really all real, and I had a chance to _help_ him, like hell I was just going to sit around and do nothing! "I wasn't going to help it happen! You are clearly hurt! I stepped in to help protect you, for _Sideswipe's_ sake! I completely intend to help you two reunite, and you can't do that if you're offline! So shut the frag up, and accept the help!"

"I would _have_ help, if you told me where the Autobots are!"

It was my turn to rear back. His words were like a painful slap in the face. It was a blunt reminder, I'd told him all I knew about Sideswipe's current location, but not the Autobots. I didn't tell him that the bus earlier was his Prime in disguise. At least, that's what I figured. I didn't tell him anything. And he must not have been close enough to hear me say Optimus' name, or he must not have realized I was addressing the _bus_ when I spoke it.

And he could have been offlined because of my fears.

"New truce then." I swallowed, my pain and discomfort forgotten. "Take Rika with you to the Autobots, so she'll be safe, and I'll tell you everything, right here and now." I think my quiet, resigned words shocked him. "I meant what I said. I _want_ you and Sides to reunite, Sunny." His optics narrowed dangerously and he opened his mouth. "'Don't call me that!'. I know." Once again, he stopped, looking taken back. Rolling my eyes, I turned to Rika. "Just...don't tell any of _them_ where I am, or what I'm doing, please? I just... I want my freedom."

She was staring at me in shock. "Bella, you want _me_ to go with giant alien robots-"

"Foster knows them." She blinked. "And there are other human allies. Or they can get someone to watch over you and send you home." I turned back to Sunstreaker, even as he slowly and painfully knelt down. "Promise me, and I'll tell you."

For a long moment, he said nothing. "Why should I not just take you vack to Tranquility now?"

"Because then I'll never tell you who you're looking for, or what they look like." His optics narrowed. "I want... Well, I just wanna go home, but that's not possible anymore, I think. I need to leave." My voice wavered and I was blinking back tears. "So I just want those I care about to be safe. My brother won't be targeted, he doesn't know anything, but Rika... She _saw_."

There was a growl. "I'd rather not have a sandy fleshbag in my interior, but if it gets you off my back, then I promise." His tone was cold, distant.

I nodded. Somehow, I just knew he was a mech of his word. "You're looking for Optimus Prime. That bus earlier that you warned me about, that was him I think. He's usually in the form of a semi, though. A red and blue, flame decaled Peterbilt semi cab, with the Autobot insignia at the top center of his grill."

Sunstreaker blinked, as though startled by my detailed explanation.

"Ironhide is a 2007 black GMC Topkick C4500, with a human driver whose a soldier by the name of William Lennox. His Autobot insignia is etched onto the tail gate of his truck form. Ratchet is a 2007 yellow Search and Rescue Hummer H3, with the Autobot insignia in the center of the Search and Rescue patch on his side doors. Bumblebee is a yellow 2007 Bumblebee Camaro SS, with black racing stripes, and the Autobot insignia is on the center of the steering wheel, and the front side of his car mode, right behind the wheel, in bright silver. At least, I'm guessing they're all the same year models. I could be wrong about _that_."

Sunstreaker remained leaning over me. "Those are the only bots on Earth?" There was a deep emotion in his voice, it sounded a lot like hesitation, worry.

I nodded. "Jazz was with them, but he was, um...offlined in the Mission City battle, by Megatron himself. Jolt will arrive, so will Skids and Mudflap. The Arcee triplets will show up, and...and Sideswipe. The way I _saw_ him suggests he'll be in Shanghai with the others in two years, but he should arrive here somewhere, first. He chose the alternate form of a 2009 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, silver, with the Autobot insignia on the center of his hood. It's a concept model that has yet to come out though, so I wouldn't look for it just yet."

"Bella, you can't just run! What about that stuff you just got all over you? Won't it hurt you? And these Decepti-guys, aren't they gonna follow after you?" Rika clutched at my arm, and the tears I was fighting finally fell. "Please, come back. We won't be locked up. Not if these bots are really the good guys!"

"They might see me as a threat." My head felt fuzzy. My vision was blurring, but I wasn't sure if it was tears or not. The adrenaline was wearing off, and my pain was starting to finally take a toll on me. I felt helpless, lost, scared, confused. I didn't know _what_ to do, but I kept fearing I was going to be locked away like a lab rat if I went to anyone. "Rika, I don't wanna be locked up, or treated like some kind of monser."

"You're not!"

"They don't know that!"

The sound of metal shifting had me turning, and I paused. The car was no longer pristine. Parts of the armor were dented, scratched, and the back hind quarter lights were gone. Half of the front end was still smoking, and the engine rattle was even louder than before.

"Oh, Sunstreaker! I'm so sorry." I felt suddenly, really heavy. My head was starting to spin, and I closed my eyes. I could feel myself shaking.

"Get her inside. She is weak."

"Bella? Bella!"

The last thing I remember was the ground rushing up to meet my face, and twin sets of arms reaching out to catch me.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

"I am concerned that Ironhide may have basis for his suspicions." Optimus Prime approached his allies, only briefly glancing down to the 'escort' he was provided. He looked around at the various government agents watching them warily, to where Secretary Keller was talking quite animatedly on the phone with someone. Then he turned back, kneeling next to Foster and Will. "The femme knew me. She seemed as though she was about to board with the other humans, but then pulled a small 'cell phone' out of her 'purse' and checked it, before backing away."

"Sounds to me like someone warned her." Ironhide's optics narrowed. "Any Decepticons nearby?"

"Not that I sensed, but there was one unidentified Cybertronian signal emenating from a yellow Ferrari behind me."

"A yellow Ferrari?" Foster stood at this, ignoring the soldiers watching him warily. "She spoke about a yellow Ferrari when we first met. It was at the scene of the bus crash, according to her. The one in town that, uh...apparently never happened. She had photos of it."

"She mentioned it briefly to me, too." Will put in, frowning. "Said it was following her."

"But... I did say Ironhide _may_ have basis for his suspicions, but I am not certain she is working for the Decepticons." Optimus glanced up at Ironhide, where the mech stood. "What about Barricade? You said he outright attacked her, that she begged for your help." Then his eyes landed on Will. "And that she seemed scared of not only him, but you as well."

Will nodded, remaining silent.

"And the look she gave me was tired, frightened. Decepticons do not _fear_ us, they hate us." The large mech sighed heavily as Ratchet approached with Sam and Mikeala in his hands, the humans silently listening in to the conversation. "She warned me about a cover name Barricade has taken. 'Casey Barr'. Apparently, Officer Casey Barr went missing not long go, only to turn up again acting strangely. He has been looking into the Mission City incident, but has almost artfully managed to get out of any interrogations without slipping up."

"If she was working for the Decepticons, why would she give Barricade away?"

Ironhide snorted. "They don't tolerate failure. Barricade failed at something, and she's turning him over to us as punishment."

"Yet that doesn't explain why _he_ harmed her, earlier."

"You guys don't get it. I told you everything she told me." Foster waved his arms, catching everyone's attention. "She's not a threat or a spy. She's hurt. She's probably not doing all that great, being chased by every giant alien robot out there. She's just a girl."

"A girl who knows far too much."

"_Just_ a girl."

Every human and box exchanged looks. Ironhide clearly wasn't about to budge from his thoughts, and Ratchet seemed inclined to agree with him. Bumlebee's door wings trembled as he looked between the tense bots, humming slightly. He was seated on a large cement bench made for the bots, his legs still sparking a little here and there, but re-attached. Optimus, for his part, was torn as well.

On one hand, she could be a very big liability and threat. On the other, she could be an innocent human, simply caught up by fate. Either way, they had to find and talk to her. But first things first. He locked eyes on Foster.

"I request to see all pictures she's taken of his Ferrari, and I would like everyone to keep an eye out for it." He was about to say more when the door burst open, and a soldier ran in. He skidded to a stop, eyeing the bots with nearly inhumanly wide eyes, before hastily saluting.

"Sirs! We just received reports of a newer model Ferrari being chased by a single police cruiser out past city limits. There has also been reports of strange sound coming from the desert, and satelite images were taken of two rob-um, Cybertronians fighting it out!"

"Wait, if they're fighting..."

"The Ferrari couldn't be an Autobot, could it?" Ratchet was frowning deeply. "Decepticons have dissent in their rank, but would not fight all out. Not when they risk exposing themselves to us at a weakened state."

"Autobots! We go, find and retrieve the girl and that Ferrari at all costs!" Optimus Prime stood. Immediately, he set optics on Ironhide. Even if Ratchet didn't trust her, his medical training would keep him from harming her, but the weapons specialist, on the other hand... "We will _not_ harm the humans. We will bring them in for questioning at once. This... This _game_ of 'cat and mouse' is over with." He was definitely learning the Earth tongue well, if the astonished looks the humans gave him were anything to go by.

"Autobots..." He eyed his allies, watching the humans as they hurriedly moved aside. "Transform, and roll out!"

* * *

**Written** : July 28, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	12. Reunited

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Why was it, I kept passing out and waking up in massive pain? Sure, it was bad enough when I just had a headache, and passed out after a long day, but now? _Everything_ hurt! I was sorely tempted to...well...hell if I know. I was too sore to even _think_._

_The last thing I remembered was falling towards the sand, and hands. Now, there was no sand. There was warm, soft leather, cool air, oh, and a set of voices bitching at each other. It only took me seconds to figure out where I was, and a micro-second more to realize what it _could_ mean._

_If I was with Sunstreaker... Was he taking me to the Autobots?_

_Oh, no. As sick and in pain as I was... As tempted as I was to allow it just in hopes Ratchet would see mercy and find a way to _end_ my pain, the last thing I wanted was to be taken to the very bots who'd probably have me locked up, interrogated, and then be forced to hand me over to the human government._

_Hell. Bloody. Fragging. No!_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

_"Letmeout!_" I shouted angrily, struggling against the seatbelts that wrapped around my twisting body, holding me down. I could feel the tears pooling, hear Rika calling to me, hear Sunstreaker barking _at_ me, but it made no difference. "I won't be someone's lab experiment! I'm not gonna be a Roswell freak!" I pulled sharply.

"Enough, femme, or I will knock you out again!" The engine growled louder than ever.

"Oh shut up, you grumpy piece of scrap metal!" Rika shouted darkly. "Bella, it's ok! I'm not gonna let them lock you up, I promise." Her voice turned soothing.

Ok, so I settled down, eyeing her warily, and I admittedly whimpered. I couldn't help it. I kept seeing mental images of being strapped to a cold table, with people leaning over me, cutting into me, ignoring my screams and talking about it all like I wasn't even there. I couldn't help but shudder.

"Y-You can't stop them." I could feel my tears rolling over my cheeks. My chest hurt. It felt tight but inflated at the same time. There was a burning pain in my stomach and throat, and I felt light headed. "Just take me to a hospital. Please."

She sighed, shaking her head and eyeing the dash warily. "Bella, how do we explain the alien blood all over you? The cuts and scrapes? The alien blood they'll find _in_ you?"

"I happened across a couple dueling little green men, almost got caught up in it, then ran for my life?" I shrugged a little. "Or maybe an alien crawled out of my stomach? It could have been the chinese food I had last week!" The giggle I gave off was nervous and high pitched. "I just... I'm afraid to see them."

"You take on a Decepticon bare-handed but fear the _Autobots_?" The incredulous tone in Sunstreaker's voice was a startling difference. "Slag, femme. If you truly consider yourself an ally, you have nothing to fear but Ironhide's paranoia and Ratchet's 'bed-side manner'!" There was a pause, and then a quick huff. "And your own pathetically weak nature, of course." His voice was rough, dark, and I could _feel_ the car speed up.

"Aww, I love you too, Sunshine." I snarked right back, grimacing as the belts tightened. "Ok, ok, enough with the Barricade impressionism, I get the hint. Don't call you Sunny or Sunshine or any variation like Sunflower. Sunstreaker it is, but if you order me to call you Primus himself, I'm so gonna puke in your interior!"

I groaned, my stomach rumbling then. "On second thought, I might just do it anyways." There was a swerve, the sound of an engine revving up. I was nearly tossed against the seat and hissed as the pain rattled through me. Then I heard the squealing of the brakes as he stopped sharply, throwing me against the seatbelts and causing me to dry heave a few times, dangerously.

Before I knew it, hands were on me, pulling me from the car, and I was dropped painfully on the ground, where I heaved a few more times.

"Slag, it! I never should have agreed to help a _human_! Here is your hospital! Remain here as I look for the other Autobots. And Primus, squishy, _stay_ here!" There was another door slam, the sound of running feet and the rev of an engine as a powerful sports car pulled away quickly and took off.

"Ow." I laid where I was. The nausea faded from my body, but the pain felt like it was suddenly ten times worse. I remained there, kissing the ground. Then I heard the shouts. "Rika. _How_ are we gonna explain this...?" I held up my hand, the blue-green energon stained to my skin.

She shook her head, and knelt at my side. "Didn't I just ask that very question?" I could see her, kind of, through my peripheral. "I dunno. I guess we can always go with terrorists and mysterious chemical bombs?"

The laugh was painful. The wheeze was agonizing, and my head had yet to _stop_ spinning. What was wrong with me? Was it the original accident? Was something wrong in my head? Or maybe it was from being thrown around? Or the energon? Or all of it combined?

Swallowing thickly, I could hear voices approaching. A vehicle skidded to a stop next to me with a blast of sirens, and footsteps could be heard, but I was in no shape to move. I just...had no strength left. I guess I used up everything on Barricade. Or maybe my body just had enough excitement to last a lifetime.

"Miss, are you alright?" I felt myself rolled over, and the urge to vomit came rushing back, I managed, somehow to roll back onto my side, despite the groping hands, and coughed and gagged, feeling a little bit of hot liquid spill out. "Everyone, get back! This young woman is suffering from radiation poisoning!" There was something in his voice that seemed off. The hands were back, but this time I felt them wiping gently at my face, and my eyes caught the odd purple tinge on the fingers as they pulled back. "Ok, ma'am, you're going to have to come with me as well."

Suddenly, the arms were behind my back and legs, and I felt myself being lifted off the ground. My chest pulled even tighter, and I gasped for breath. I could only place my head against the chest as I was carried, and the dark uniform-like shirt made me think either a police officer, or a paramedic.

He wasn't acting like Barricade would, Still, the shirt threw me, and I struggled in his arms.

"Calm yourself, young lady. I'm concerned about the physical condition of your body, and you are very weak. I have a lot of work ahead of me just to find out what is going on. By my readings you should not have energon in or on you." His words wiped Barricade's face right out of my mind, and replaced it with the grumpy blue optics of Ratchet. His words? There was no doubt in my mind. Why else would he have chased everyone else off?

And why else was he putting me in the back of a medical Hummer?

I caught a brief glance of the patch on his shoulder, sporting the familiar Autobot insignia and it only confirmed my thoughts.

Swallowing thickly, I looked up at his face. I saw neatly combed black hair, and piercing blue eyes focused on my injuries. "R-" I coughed and gagged, sucking in a painful, shaky breath. "Ratchet?" He paused, blinking at me in shock. "Help." For once, my mind wasn't being on locked up. The pain was just _too_ much! "Help me." I sobbed shakily, gasping and choking. "Please."

His gaze fixed to my face for a long moment, but before I could tell if he heard or cared about my words, he turned away, his holographic form doing something, and I felt a weird tingling and there was an odd flash, before he returned with a syringe.

"I am uncertain how you could possibly have energon within your body and still be human at the same time. My scans are coming back inconclusive, but my x-rays show you are clearly human. This is most curious and worrying." I think he injected something into me, but by that time, I was _so_ tired. "Rest femme, I will do all I can."

As my eyes closed, I wondered what was happening with Sunstreaker and the others.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

He was lucky. By Primus, was he lucky! Even as he pulled from the local medical center, sirens wailing and speeding just beyond normal vehicle limitations, he swore Primus was smiling down on him. It had been a random decision. He, as a medic, would be able to pose as medical personelle and get into the center to find if the femme had been there. Yet he never had to enter.

Just pulling up to the building, he found her lying on the ground, incredibly and dangerously ill. The thing that got him the most, however, was the energon coating her form, mixing with blood where injuries lay open, seeping slightly. She was having trouble breathing, and upon closer inspection, he found her to be coughing up a combination of blood and energon.

With a low hum of worry, he opened an internal communications link.

_**'Ratchet to Prime, I have news.'**_ He allowed the grim tone of his greeting to inform Prime that his news was not of the happier kind. He could feel the curiosity in Prime's end of the link and vented to himself. _**'I've got the femme, but she is incredibly ill. I am uncertain if it is the energon in her system, she is also registering incredible amounts of Allspark radiation. I have yet to pinpoint the source; her vitals are all over the place.'**_

There was a sense of shock, confusion, worry, and even an undertone of suspicion that try as he might, Ratchet could not ignore and Prime could not hide. _**'How can that be possible? Is she one of us, or a human?'**_

_**'Human, from what I can tell, but something is effecting her system in a very bad way. I am...uncertain exactly what it is at the moment. I am taking her back to the base for further testing. Has there been any news on whether or not we will remain at the Hoover Dam base?'**_ Ratchet's optics narrowed as he drove. _We help them defend their planet, and few humans wish us ill will because there was damage, casualties. They are not the only ones to have lost allies._

_**'Not yet. Secretary Keller is still trying to get the President to agree to move us to a place known as Diego Garcia.'**_

That was one thing in the humans system they could not find, and it didn't help they were forbidden to hack anymore government files until they were given security clearance. Any attempts would be considered an act of hostility, as far as certain people were concerned. So they were forced to sit back and accept whatever these humans decided.

_**'But that is a matter for another time. Get the femme to the base, and do what you can to save her.'**_

Ratchet's optics scanned the crowd around him, and he turned a corner at a green light, still moving quickly. His sirens went full blast, and he noted with respect how quickly vehicles moved out of his way, clearing a path. Then a flash of yellow caught his attention. It wasn't so much the color that had him looking, however. It was the vehicle attached to it.

The yellow Ferrari was on his heels.

For a split second, Ratchet's sensors left the unconscious and ill woman, and her friend, and focused on the vehicle. It was immediately clear that it was Cybertronian, and as it raced around vehicles, only to slip behind a dump truck behind him, Ratchet caught sight of the symbol on the front. _**'Prime, I have more news. The Ferrari is following me.'**_ His sensors returned to the femmes inside him, even as he reached out with his sensors to try and identify the vehicle.

_**'Autobot or Decepticon? Are you in danger?'**_ There was an urgency in his tone.

_**'Relax. It's an Autobot, but I'm not reading any signals or communications lines. Might be damaged. If that's the case, he or she may be unable to identify **_**me**_** as an Autobot.'**_

_**'Have they attempted an attack?'**_

_**'No, they are simply following for the moment.'**_

_**'Understood. Don't engage. Continue to the base. I'm on my way, and I've already contacted the others to meet us.'**_

Mumbling quietly to himself, Ratchet vented in minor annoyance, taking another turn. Only a single glance told him the Ferrari was ducking behind vehicles, but keeping up with him easily. _**'Did you expect me to, with a dangerously ill human femme inside me, and her civilian friend?'**_ Hitting the city limits, he sped up even more, noting how the Ferrari ducked out of hiding and sped up as well.

A closer inspection showed the car to be heavily damaged. A scan told him there were also damages the alternate form was hiding. The armor was dented in more than one place, with a blackened and burned spot across half of the front hood. Frowning, though it was hidden by his alternate form, Ratchet growled lowly, angrily. There was definitely an attack, and he hoped to Primus the attacker was left in worse condition. And he wondered even more how the femme got so much energon into her system.

Exiting the city, Ratchet pulled off the highway. While she was sick, she was also stable. He turned off his sirens and hit the sand, spinning a moment before he moved forward. He spend towards a nearby mountain range and small forest, twisting and turning around the cacti until he hit the boulders around the base of the mountains. He then sped around them, before pulling a careful spin -so as to not jostle his patient- and faced the way he'd come.

The Ferrari came racing around the corner with him, before skidding to a stop. It remained back a ways, idling.

Forming his holographic form, Ratchet stood before his true body, frowning at the car. He watched, waiting. Then his sensors pinged with Bumblebee and Ironhide's signals. Prime's was only a moment after theirs. _"Identify yourself."_ He ordered in Cybertronian, his eyes narrowing. Normally, he wouldn't need to ask, but without an identifying signal, and with the alien disguises, there were doubts and questions.

There was almost a hesitation, before a young blonde man formed before the Ferrari, eyes narrowed suspiciously. _"Autobot Chief Medical Officer, Ratchet?"_ When Ratchet nodded once, sharply, the young man nodded back, face lightening into a mask of indifference. _"Autobot Sunstreaker at your service."_ The bot's engine revved, and the holoform winced visibly, before his eyes widened.

_"You're damaged."_ It wasn't a question.

The boy hung his head a little, before looking up sharply, glaring. _"You have my..."_ He paused then, an odd scrunching of his face. A rather disgusted look crossed his face a moment, and he shuddered, before shaking his head. _"You...have my...charge."_

For a moment, Ratchet stared blankly. _"Your..."_ Blinking, he tilted his head, looking oddly like he was about to faint. It was an unusual look on his face, and if Sunstreaker didn't know better, he was almost expecting smoke to rise from the Hummer behind him. Ratchet shook his head, blinking away the confusion, but the shock and disbelief remained. _"Your _charge_? What the slag have I missed?"_

_"I made a deal with the femme. The... The terms of the deal changed, but honor demands I keep up my end. She is in danger. She fears for her freedom and safety with you. I will not allow you to lock her up, if that is not what she wants." _His eyes drifted past the holoform he spoke to. _"How bad is it? She..." _Once again, he paused, but this time there was a faintly surprised look on his face, but it didn't last long. _"She distracted Barricade from finishing me off, and ingested the energon from an injury she caused to his ankle cables."_

Blinking again, Ratchet tilted his head a little. Honor was an excuse he could believe, and finally knowing the source of the energon floating in her system, he nodded. _"She is stable, I will do all I can."_

_"And then I will take her from our base of operations."_

The others had arrived by now, and Optimus formed his holographic form, frowning. _"I cannot allow that."_

_"I made a promise Prime."_ Sunstreaker turned his head to face his leader. _"I swore I would protect her. From Decepticon and Autobot alike. She feels she will be tortured and locked away in a prison if she comes to you. She has honored her end of the deal, giving me her information."_ He didn't miss how their eyes widened. _"I will honor mine. I will show her Autobots are to be trusted."_ Turning to face him fully, he narrowed his eyes. _"Is that not what _you _would want?"_

It was Prime's turn to hesitate then, and everyone could only imagine the thoughts roaming through his processor. He eyed Sunstreaker a long moment, before looking at Ratchet. Then his eyes turned to the back of Ratchet, and he vented. _"I will speak to her then, when she is will enough. I would hear her words myself, before making any decisions. I'm afraid that is all I can offer you, Sunstreaker." _He bowed his head a little. Then he looked around, frowning, and asked the question that everyone was both wondering and dreading at the same time.

_"Sideswipe is not with you?"_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : July 29, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	13. Confusion and Honor

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

**(Several Days Later)**

To say Sunstreaker was a mess would be an understatement. He rarely spoke, and then only to the bots. Well, ok, more than once, people had caught him in a heated argument with the new girl, Rika, and would stop and listen intently, hearing him getting as good as he gave.

They wondered why she bothered trying to talk to him, or why he replied at all for that matter, when he barely gave anyone else the time of day. Supposedly that was just how Sunstreaker was _supposed _to behave, or how he did normally, though a lot of people wondered about his near constant seemingly distractedness. Sam was subject to speculative looks, as were Mikeala and Will, but when asked about the looks, he'd simply snarl at them about how small and weak they were.

The funny thing was the absolute disbelief in his tone every time.

Ratchet had, for the lack of a better word, stolen himself a large storage room to act as a temporary medical bay, and no one had been allowed in it since he'd settled down. Not even the damaged Sunstreaker or still healing Bumblebee. The door remained shut, and on more than one trip past it, Prime himself had seen the yellow mech -Sunstreaker, not Ratchet- leaning against the massive walls, waiting silently.

So this trip was not so different in that respect.

However, he _was_ surprised to see the human, Rika Morgan, standing across from the bot, and the two of them locked into a glaring contest of sorts. He paused in the middle of the hall, watching as they glared at each other silently. Sunstreaker was leaning against the wall, his arms folded over his chest, and optics narrowed, and amazingly, the human had taken up the exact same posture across from him.

Raising a single optic ridge, Optimus began his trek back down the hall, his approach breaking their contest as Rika nearly leapt out of her skin and spun, and Sunstreaker calmly looked over.

_She is doing far better than she was. Despite the circumstances, she seems to be adjusting to our presence well._ He nodded slightly to the young human femme, before kneeling down to her. "Rika Morgan, I trust you are well."

Her eyes narrowed. "My best friend's in there-" She gestured over her shoulder, towards the room behind her. "With the grumpiest medic in the history of grumps-" Sunstreaker snorted and she ignored him. "Probably being poked and prodded like some rag doll. I'm standing here, facing a freakin' talking skyscraper, and facing off against the worst case of PMS I've _ever_ seen-" She gestured at Sunstreaker briefly, earning a growl. "So no, I'm not really sure I'm 'well'."

He cocked his head to the side, quickly searching the worldwide web for many of the terms she used, before suppressing the urge to chuckle. "You are not running away, screaming." Prime kept his voice soft, so as to not frighten her.

She raised an eyebrow in response. "And it's not for a lack of trying. That little yellow and black robot's _really_ fast." Rubbing at her stomach, she grimaced. "And strong."

That time he did chuckle, the image flashing across his processor. It was true, too. When she hopped out of Ratchet's interior, and Isabella had been taken away, she'd tried to follow, only to be locked out. Then she spent a long moment, scratching and screaming at the door to be let in. When that didn't work, she turned, finally noticing the bots.

_Then_ she started 'freaking out' as the humans put it, running around and screaming at the top of her lungs, until Bumblebee had to catch her or risk her harming herself, or possibly others.

"You have calmed a great deal since then." He pushed gently, spotting the way her eyes kept darting to the room.

"And I'd probably be in even _better_ shape, if I had any idea what my best friend's going through." Her lower lip jutted out ever so slightly, and her gaze darkened with worry and pain. "She's...like the sister I never had."

"And she is in the best possible care. If anybot can save her, it's Ratchet. His 'bedside manner' might need work, as most humans and Autobots claim, but he is a dedicated and knowledgable medic."

"I still wanna see her." With a heave of a sigh, the femme leaned against the wall again.

Optimus nodded, before slowly standing and facing Sunstreaker. He didn't even need to ask. Sunstreaker's sense of honor kept him outside this room. He felt he _had_ to make sure the femme was alright. In a sense, he'd taken her as a charge, and his pride refused to allow him to leave her side until he felt his end of their 'bargain' had been completed. It was the only reason the bot was here. He'd made his feelings about humans clear the moment he arrived on the base.

_**'She will be fine, I am certain.'**_

_**'Then Ratchet wouldn't still be in there.'**_

_**'It will take time for her body to recover from whatever was wrong with her.'**_

_**'He would still have news, and have emerged to give it to us.'**_

Venting softly, Prime shook his head. _He hasn't changed one bit. Still the same, stubborn bot. __**'I was about to go and see how he's going.'**_

_**'You'll get wrenched.'**_ Sunstreaker's optics flashed to the larger bot briefly, before rubbing at a couple of fresher looking, smaller dents to prove his point. _**'He doesn't want to be bothered.'**_

_**'He must have some answer by now. I believe **_**everyone**_** is anxious for any news he can give.'**_ Venting again, Prime held up his hand to forestall questions, and switched channels. _**'Prime to Ratchet, has there been any change in the femme's condition?'**_

There was silence on the other end. It took so long for Ratchet to respond, Prime was about to enter the med bay, worried something had happened, but when he _did_ reply, the bot sounded weary. _**'I have scanned every inch of her form. It's strange. I was certain the poison running through her system would have killed her, but it seems her body is fighting it. Or perhaps, it's something else. She is stable but very weak.'**_

_**'Is there a reason you have all but locked yourself in the room with her? For such a long period of time, for that matter?'**_

_**'Yes... I'm afraid there is.' **_There was another sigh, this time more frustrated than anything, and a flash of frustration, exhaustion and concern flew through the link. _**'The Allspark radiation, combined with the energon that made it into her system, has somehow managed to collect around her skeletal structure. I am...uncertain **_**how**_** this is happening, but it seems to be fusing to her 'bones'. Her body is not reacting harshly to it there. In fact, it seems to be accepting it. I...have no way to reverse the process. Not without a very complex surgery to remove it, and that would most likely end up with her death.'**_

Optimus' optics flashed down to Rika, who was staring at the floor, idly dragging the toe of her shoe across a crack in the linoleum, then to Sunstreaker, who appeared to be watching the femme with a bored, annoyed look on his face. _**'If we cannot reverse it, will the process not kill her anyways?'**_ His spark ached. From what he'd heard, questioning her friend, and what he'd learned, questioning Sunstreaker, the femme was indeed an innocent. Possibly a femme from another dimension, who had come into her information and then accidentally ended up in their world. All her pain, her fear, it was all a result of fate. Now...was she to die because of it?

There was silence again, a sense of concern lingering over the link. _**'I...do not know, Prime. It is a possibility, but in all my millenia as a medic, I have never seen anything like this. Quite literally **_**anything**_** could happen at this point. And the worst part is, I cannot locate the source of the Allspark radiation. There is a burn on her chest, over her organic spark, and a broken chain was caught up in her hair, but nothing else. I would suggest asking Sunstreaker if she told him is good news, however. As of yesterday, her vitals are improving once again. Her external injuries are healing well, and her internals as well. If her progress remains as such, she should awaken by tomorrow afternoon.'**_

Letting out a sigh of relief, Optimus turned his optics to Sunstreaker, whose head popped up at the sound quickly. _**'Understood. Please keep me informed, Prime out.'**_ Switching channels, he relaxed the tense stance he hadn't even noticed he'd taken and nodded at the young twin. _**'Ratchet states she is improving. However, the combination of energon and Allspark radiation is not dissipating from her system, but rather seems to be concentrating around her bone structure. We are uncertain how it will effect her. I...apologize, Sunstreaker, but she cannot leave at this time. To do so would be far too dangerous for her.'**_

The bot's optic ridges narrowed. _**'I swore on my honor.'**_

_**'Will your honor withstand her offlining?'**_ When Sunstreaker frowned, turning away and not saying a word, Prime vented softly, and shook his head. _**'I cannot make any promise as of yet, but I will do what I can for her.'**_ He paused momentarily before speaking again. _**'Do you know where the Allspark radiation has come from? Ratchet is unable to locate the source.'**_He played back that portion of Ratchet's conversation for Sunstreaker's system to process, and watched as the younger bot's optics narrowed as he processed.

_**'I... She said it was fake. Something from her...'dimension'.'**_ There was hesitation in his voice, and he frowned. _**'I do not know about travelling between dimensions. She wore...a shard of the Allspark. It was small, but contained the same runic symbols as the cube. She stated it was fake, however. It was...'merchandise' from her dimension.'**_

Optimus frowned, his spark humming uncomfortably as he relayed the information to Ratchet, who hissed and cursed angrily. _**'I see. That is...worrying.'**_

_**'I will do what I can.'**_ Ratchet's tone went even more grim. _**'But I do not know of any way to safely remove the radiation. I will have to continue to monitor her and process this information.'**_

_**'Will she...'**_ More hesitation, and a sense of guilt that surprised and confused Optimus. It was faint, almost indetectable, but it was there. Sunstreaker cocked his head at the door, still frowning. _**'Will the organic survive?'**_

_**'It is unknown. Ratchet is doing all he can. We must wait and hope he finds a solution.'**_ Bowing his head, Optimus felt the unease burning in his tanks. Then he turned his head to the young femme, crouching with a squeak of gears. "Rika Morgan." The femme looked up at him, and he nodded, lowering a hand to her. "If you will come with me, I will update you of your friend's condition to the best of my ability."

She only hesitated a second, before climbing onto his hand. She looked around, clearly afraid, but clung to his thumb as he lifted her. Together, they made their way down the hall.

* * *

**(Later)**

Venting hard, Prime stalked carefully down the hall. Twice already, he'd nearly stepped on human soldiers. Not because he was distracted, although he was, but because they were so small and tended to get underfoot a lot, without realizing it. Now he kept careful attention to make sure he didn't step on any of them. He wandered through the halls and back to the main hangar, where he and the other bots were forced to stay.

First, his optics went to Sam, who was speaking quietly to his parents. They were more than upset, being released from custody under Sector Seven, only to be held in custody by the military, and forced to stay on the base until things were understood.

"It's ok. T-They're... They're good guys. I mean, the ones with the red eyes are the bad guys. The ones with t-the blue eyes are the good guys." He sounded nervous, patting his femme creator's shoulder, and glancing between his femme and mech creators, both of whom were watching the bots warily from a corner. "I-It's ok. That one over there, h-h-he saved my life! More than once!" He pointed to Bumblebee. "And that one, too!" Next he pointed to Optimus, then waved and ducked his head, realizing the larger bot was watching him.

Optimus nodded back.

"They're...robots." His femme creator blinked, looking dazed, before grabbing Sam close. "Oh, my beautiful baby! What have you gotten yourself into?" This is the third time she'd done this, but Sam struggled no less to get free of her hold, spluttering and blushing. Bumblebee simply stared down at them silently as Ratchet made a brief appearance to fuss over his legs and throat, deeming him as healing exceptionally well and actually clearing him to go with Sam where ever the human boy went. Well, as long as it waited a few more days, anyways. Just to be sure.

Turning away, Optimus locked eyes on Will Lennox, standing next to Sarah Lennox, his wife, and their infant daughter, Annabelle Lennox.

"How are you doing?"

She shook her head, frowning a little, before leaning into his embrace. "You almost died." He voice shook and she shook her head. "You promised me you'd come back. You could have died. I mean, I know it was possible, but I never _imagined..._." She sighed, leaning into him more. "I'm...scared. And I'm...happy." She smiled, turning her face up and kissing his cheek. Then she nudged him sharply, shifting Annabelle carefully to do so. "And I'm angry. You could have been _killed_!" She kept her voice down however, not to frighten her baby girl.

"I know. I'm sorry, sweetheart. I never imagined anything like _this_ could happen, but we kicked major Decepticon a-" He froze, seeing his wife's dangerous look, and cleared his throat nervously. Then he glanced over at Ironhide, Optimus following his gaze to the big black bot, to see the look in blue optics as the Weapons Specialist eyed the femme and her sparkling worriedly. Apparently something had happened there, with a threat of some kind. Something that made him wary of the human femme. It was difficult to get the details out of the bot. "On the upside, I made some great friends, and Ironhide here was assigned to be my, uh... Well, I guess a 'bodyguard' is a good way to explain it."

"Only because those Decepticons are still out there and can attack again." Her expression was dark, but worried as she gazed back at the mech.

There was a tap on Prime's food pad, and he turned his head down to see Secretary Keller by his feet. Kneeling down, he nodded at the man, pushing all other voices out of his immediate focus to listen to the small human male. "Secretary Keller."

"Optimus Prime." The man nodded, offering a weary smile. "I finally got an answer from the president. He's concerned about this girl you brought in, and I'm to be informed of her condition at all times, and what's going on, _but_..." The smile grew slightly. "He's given me permission to move the Autobots to a larger, more secure base, where you will also be given more freedom. Given all you've done to help save our world, he and many others are very grateful. You have also been given a higher level of security." Then he paused. "However, taking into consideration there are still Decepticons on Earth, he's requested your assistance in putting together an Autobot and human special ops team to help continue to protect our world."

Inclining his head deply, a slight sense of relief coursed through the large bot. "We would be honored to help you, as long as it does not involve trading information of our technology. Your race is young, and I will not contribute willingly to your wars."

The man nodded. "I can respect that. All we're asking is your help to track down and eliminate any Decepticon threats. We will offer you a portion of the United States Military and Navy as assistance, including any willing soldiers who have already faced down the Decepticons in Mission City."

"I suggest you speak to _them_ about that."

There was another agreeing nod. "There is still the matter of the humans involved in your battle. The Witwicky boy, his family, the Lennox family, the Epps family, Miss Banes, and any others? If there _are_ Decepticons remaining on Earth, will they attack them in retribution? Is there any protection you can offer them?"

"Unfortunately, our numbers are very few. I would like your permission to send out a message to any of our comrades to come to Earth as well."

"I've already spoken to the president about any possible request, and he's approved it, though warily."

Optimus nodded. "There is...no way of knowing how many Autobots still float among the stars, but we will need all the assistance we can get. As for protection... Ironhide will be guarding the entire Lennox family when they are together, and William Lennox if and when he is on base. Bumblebee has requested to remain with Samuel Witwicky, and I have agreed; as has the boy. He can also watch over his family when he is with them. As for Miss Banes and the other humans, I would suggest Ratchet and myself making rounds of Tranquility for protection, but there isn't much else we can do. Ratchet is watching over Miss Cameron, her injuries curious and frightening."

"And what about her injuries?"

"I...do not know. I apologize." Optimus knelt completely, venting hard. "Her injuries are confusing, even to us. In the several millenia we have existed, nothing like this has ever happened before. It appears Allspark radiation has entered her body, but we are unable to find any sign of the shard that would have infected her. It has made her ill, and combining it with the energon she ingested when she battled a Decepticon-" He blinked, the idea still baffling. He'd seen organic males fighting, but to see through Sunstreaker's memories how she fought for him, it kept flashing through his processor. "It has settled into into her body." He explained everything Ratchet has told him, feeling weary.

There was no doubt in his mind that the other bots could hear his every word, and that this turn of events could change things very badly for them, but he spoke honestly, trusting _this_ human not to blame them for an event that happened outside of their control.

"I see." Keller frowned. "This doesn't bode well. The human government is going to want to see her. Maybe, after running a battery of tests, they might be able to help come up with something. At the very _least_, they want a chance to examine her. I understand that's probably not a good idea, and I'm doing what I can-"

There was a deep, low growl, and suddenly, Ironhide was moving quickly, carefully, with purpose. Even as Prime quickly encircled the human protectively with his arms, he turned his head and narrowed his optics. Seeing the yellow form moving forward with a snarl affixed to his facial plates, optics quickly widened, before setting into a stern look. _"Sunstreaker, stand down! That is an order!"_ He laced the tone with command as Prime, and watched as Ironhide grabbed the yellow mech, restraining him. _"That is enough!"_

_"I won't let them! I made a fragging promise, and I _will_ keep it! Even if it's to a slagging squishy!"_ Sunstreaker was shouting loud enough that humans backed away from the Autobots, staring at them worriedly. Soldiers raised their weapons, and families clutched at each other, huddling a distance away. _"I won't let them lock her up!"_

"Hey! Just what the hell's going on?"

Optimus turned back to Keller and vented, his rigid body setting relaxing ever so slightly. "We cannot allow this. The human came to us against her own will, frightened of being locked up. She is an innocent, and as you can see, at least one of our mechs will stubbornly refuse your human scientists access to her. He has made a promise to her, and his honor demands he keep it, no matter what it means to the other humans who approach her. He has, for all intents and purposes, taken her as a temporary charge. I, also, will not allow it. Her body is fragile right now, and I fear any attempts by humans to help her will only harm her. If we are to find a way to save her life, I fear Ratchet himself is her only hope now."

Again, he was more than aware that the others could hear him, and were likely understanding just how fragile this situation was. It all rested on this human and her health.

Frowning, Keller eyed him a long moment, before sighing. "Then I pray you are right. If she dies, it bodes very badly for Autobot and human political relations. I honestly don't know what will happen, if she survives. Until then, I'll talk to the president and see if I can't get him on board for a little more assistance here." He shook his head. "Everything is a mess. Such a mess."

"Yes...a mess..." Prime vented once more, turning to Sunstreaker, who had managed to pull free of Ironhide and was walking away angrily. _Primus help us all._

_

* * *

_

**Written** : July 29, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	14. Dream?

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Was I alive or dead? The last thing I remembered was feeling like death warmed over. Then...I was cold. I wasn't in town, where I expected to wake up. I wasn't in a hospital, or in the grasp of giant alien robots. I wasn't at home, either. No, I was surrounded by...forest. It was day, warm with a cool breeze. The sun shone down, half obscured by clouds in the sky, but the forest itself was ominously quiet._

_Just what was going on?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

Looking around, I stood in the forest. It was...somehow familiar, but also completely unfamiliar. Large trees loomed overhead, strangely foreboding despite their beauty. It was odd. The areas in the light seemed empty, though being filled with flowering trees and wildflowers. A chipmunk scattered through a beam of sunlight easily enough. Then, in the shadows, everything seemed to fade. It was like my sight was somehow sharper than normal, and the shadows were so deep, they almost seemed to swallow the light.

Taking a single step forward, I paused as I felt the crunch of a few twigs under my foot, but it was muffled. Looking down, I realized I was dressed in the same outfit I was wearing when I woke up this morning, and it was pristine, like I'd just woken up and gotten dressed. I didn't have one scratch on my body. No aches. No pains. No bruises. I was...fine.

But I felt wrong.

I couldn't explain it. Stepping forward again, I looked around. This nagging feeling ate at me, and my heart pounded in my chest with fear. "Hello?" My eyes darted back and forth, taking in every sight I possibly could. Nothing at all seemed out of place, but that didn't mean everything was alright. "Is anyone there?" I moved forward again, spotting a rough path through the woods just ahead of me.

I stepped towards it. Maybe if I followed it, I could end up in civilization again, and get answers there.

Just as soon as I got close, the sound of a loud, rumbling engine caught my attention. My head shot up of it's own accord, turning towards the sound, even as my heart stepped up another notch. Even as my eyes landed on the incoming vehicle, they widened with horror.

_Oh, no. Not this..._

The truck sped down the road quickly, dodging around tree stumps and boulders. Even as my heart quite possibly literally skipped a beat, I watched as the beams of sunlight landed on the red and blue flame decal. The headlights were on, shining brightly into my eyes as it hit the path, rumbling down it at a nearly dangerous speed.

"No."

The truck ambled on, closer to me, and right behind it flew a strange jet that was like nothing I'd ever seen before. It definitely wasn't human-made in design, and I had no doubts as to who it was. Even as the truck skidded to the side, the passenger door flying open and a single human figure being expelled, before the truck transformed into an all too familiar giant robot, I found my jaw dropping.

"No! Optimus!"

I moved forward, intending to run towards him. I had to warn him! I _had_ to!

"Optimus, stop! You need to run!"

I ran towards Sam, even as he stood, his back to me, and brushed himself off, I ran past him. I kept moving, until a tight grip on my arm stopped me. Spinning in place, I found myself staring into the dark eyes of Sam Witwicky. A small part of my mind was screaming that I was meeting _the_ star of the Transformers movie, Shia Laboef, but I pushed it off, my entire body nearly humming with pressure.

If everything I remembered was true, that wasn't _Shia_ I was staring at. He was even cuter in person, but still not my type, and I shook my head. _Sam_ just stared at me, something unreadable in his eyes, his grip strong, unrelenting.

"Sam! We need to stop him! It's a trap!" I turned to find Optimus engaging Megatron nearby. "Optimus! It's a trap! Run! You need to run!" Pulling at the grip on my arm, I spun, glaring at Sam as he just...stared at me. "Let me go! We have to stop him! Please!" I turned back, pulling and pulling. It was then I realized, something was off. The grip on my arm was like steel. Stronger than I would have expected. It didn't stop me from pulling, however. If nothing else, I pulled harder. "We need to stop him! They're gonna ambush him! They're gonna _kill_ him! Sam, let me _go_!"

"What do you want?"

I froze. It was like I'd suddenly turned to stone. Even as the grip tightened impossibly more, I gasped. My chest lurched with pain, and I clutched at it. My eyes turned to the fighting robots, but even as I looked up, the scene seemed to fast forward around me. Suddenly, I was standing in a different area of the forest, and the entire scene was different. Sam was still there, staring at me like nothing else existed, but the bots were different.

It was no longer just Megatron and Optimus fighting. The other Decepticons were there, and Optimus was being badly beaten.

"Optimus, no! Sam, _look_!" I tugged again, feeling the flesh below his grip as it began to bruise. "Stop it, please!"

"What do you want?"

The voice wasn't human. It was none I'd ever heard before, but I ignored it as I struggled to get free. I watched as Optimus yelled at the bots, denying their words, fighting them with both his energon swords and all his strength. Then my eyes widened, and I could feel the hot burn of tears as they trailed down my cheeks. He turned, knocking Megatron away, before standing.

"Sam! Where are you?"

"_BEHIND YOU!_"

It was like he didn't hear my words. He stepped our way, looking around blindly, calling for Sam, but even as he did so, Megatron came up behind him. With a deafening explosion that had my ears ringing, and a shower of sparks, a blade exploded from his chest, dripping burning energon as it lifted him right off the ground. I think I screamed, but the pain and the noise was too much to be sure. Even as the sword was pulled free, Optimus' optics flickered on and off, dimming dangerously fast. Energon almost poured from the injury, and I think...

I think I could actually _see_ his spark, the light of which fluctuated with his optics as he staggered forward a step, before falling sideways listlessly, like a rag doll.

"Tell me, human. What do you want?"

I felt numb. I was in physical agony, but my mind was empty. Turning towards the voice, I noticed it was Sam, but it wasn't. His eyes were glowing red coals, but his expression kind. "I don't want anyone to _die_!" My voice cracked, and I choked on a sob. My shaking body only shook even more, and the pain in my heart only seemed to get worse. "The femmes, Optimus, I don't want any of them to go through all that pain. And my God, _Sam_! It... It can't be his destiny to _die_! I want to stop it all! I don't want them to suffer!"

I loved the movie, but I hated all the suffering on the part of the Autobots. How many Decepticons were lost, out of what appeared to be a vast army of survivors? And how many Autobots were lost in comparison, their own army tiny already? It didn't seem right the _only_ femmes to show up were offlined. It didn't seem right that Jazz died because of some stupid stereotype that _millions_ of people didn't agree with! It wasn't right that Optimus died! Or Sam! I don't care that they were brought back! How traumatizing was that for not only them, but the people and bots around them, too?

"What will you give up?"

The voice that came from his throat was definitely not human. It wasn't Sam facing me, and at that point, I began to realize that this wasn't right. Well, I _knew_ it wasn't right, but I began to theorize at what was going on. My money was on either a really messed up hallucination, a vision, or a dream.

"What will I...?" I hesitated then. _It's all really real._ My mind struggled to take it in. I accepted it, but was now really thinking about what it all _meant_. Autobots, Decepticons, and everything that came with them. It'd put my family in danger but...they weren't _my_ family anymore. "I..." What would I have to give up? What was I willing to give up, to stop the deaths? "What will I...? I... I'd give up..." Closing my eyes, I thought about Rika. Was she even _my_ Rika anymore? "What about-"

"She will be fine, herself."

Somehow that didn't reassure me, but, I couldn't stop thinking about Optimus, his vicious death trying to protect one human boy he saw as a friend. And in return, my mind ran to Sam, who went through hell and back, dying and coming back to save Optimus. All the pain, the death, the terror... "I'd give anything." I locked eyes with 'Sam', feeling them burn along with my chest. "To stop the death, to stop all that torture, I'd give up anything."

He stared into my eyes a long time. I don't know if he was waiting for something, or reading me, but he just stared at me, his expression intense, but void of emotion. I stared back, terrified to tear my eyes from him. I couldn't bear to turn around, to see Optimus' lifeless body lying behind me. As it was, I felt like the image was forever burned into my mind. His flickering optics, coughing up energon, yet still pleading for Sam to run for his life.

The pain increased, and I exhaled sharply, feeling like I'd been sucker punched.

If this _was_ some alternate dimension, I had nothing left. My friends weren't _mine._ My family wasn't _mine_. My home, my job, my _life_ wasn't _mine._ None of this belonged to me, and it seemed I was the only one from my dimension brought here. I...felt like I had nothing left to lose. So what I had? I'd willingly give it up for the chance to make a real difference, to do some good.

To _save lives_!

"They are not of your race." For the first time, emotion seeped into his expression. A strange, thoughtful look crossed his face, and something more than just kindness filled his eyes. "They are alien, strange, something most people fear."

"They're also heros." I was remembering the battles, everything they gave up to protect our world. "Compassionate." Ironhide with Annabelle, in the fanfictions. Optimus. Bumblebee with Sam and Mikeala. "Dedicated and fierce." The twins in their stories, their dedication to defy all odds when it came to each other. Their honor and bravery. "They're smart and resourceful." No real images came to mind, but they survived _so_ much war.

"You care for them? You barely know the real bots, only what you've 'read' in 'fanfictions'. Only what you've seen on television, heard in news." He cocked his head to the side. "You have only truly met Sunstreaker." Now a smirk crossed his features. A dry smirk. "And he is not the best example of Cybertronian 'compassion' around."

"He is, with Sideswipe." I countered, frowning.

Once again, he paused.

And my frown deepened. "Who _are_ you?"

"That isn't important." Finally, he released his grip on my arm. "This is not real, hence why you could not stop it. You truly care for the Autobots and their fate. I have seen through your memories what you think of them, and I believe you to be worthy of a chance not many get. How would you like to truly make a difference to all the Autobots? A chance to stop all the death?"

My heart leapt into my throat. "What about Rika? She'll be safe?"

"She is with the Autobots as we speak. She will be as safe as any other, but the chance I offer you also gives you the ability to better protect even her."

I swallowed, looking at him deeply. It wasn't only his eyes that were different now. Gone was 'Samuel Witwicky'. In his place was an androgenous robot with kind crimson optics. It had no hair, silvery, metallic skin, and was only inches taller than me. "I already said it. I'd give anything to stop all the death." And I meant it, too. If Rika would be safe, I could give up whatever necessary to stop good bots from dying unnecessarily. I hated it when Jazz died. I hated it when all the other bots in the movie died. If I could do something...

Who really even knew if all this was real? But if it was, and I was _really_ getting a chance to make a difference, save lives... Who was I not to take it? Who was I to ignore what I wanted, deep down in my heart, beyond the fear, the uncertainty, the confusion.

"Very well then. I'll give you what you want, though I fear you may regret it. At least, at first." Frowning, the bot nodded, stepping back.

It was then that I realized the scene had changed once again. Gone was the forest. One hesitant check told me Optimus' body was also gone, that, I was thankful sky was no longer blue with white spots, clouds floating overhead and blocking out the sun every few minutes. Instead, I was standing on the edge of a cliff. All around me was endless sand and rocky ledges. The sky was a deep, dusky orange, with a giant, burning sun filling the sky.

Behind 'Sam' stood several large robots, even bigger than Megatron, who dwarfed Prime himself. They all had red eyes, and I immediately recognized them as the Primes. They stood tall, silently, regarding me with emotionly empty faces, their eyes almost boring into me.

"Uh, hi?"

"You would give up anything to save a species not your own. You feel great compassion and a drive to help protect the remaining Autobots." The largest one stepped forward, bending so I wasn't straining quite so badly to see his face. "I have seen great compassion in your young race, and I suspect Optimus Prime has seen it himself. We are proud of his decision to remain and protect your world. He does the title 'Prime' proud."

"Orion has always been a powerful leader." Another stepped forward. "He has always trusted his instincts and they have never led him wrong."

"Nor do they lead him wrong now." 'Sam' added softly, still smaller than the others and only a little bit bigger than me. "It is time to go home. Accept your decision and know that all will be alright, if you truly give it a chance. Use our gift to change what you've seen, to save lives. It is _your_ destiny."

"What about Sam?" Their words, only a fraction of them were processing. Others just seemed to bounce around in my head. I felt like I was filtering things slowly. Only one word was processed at a time. Only one word accepted at a time, each sentence very slowly coming to make sense. "What about his destiny?"

"It may or may not be to die. We cannot know how your decision will change the future. We can only know once _his_ decision is made, if he is given the option of making it. Make your decisions wisely. Stick by who you are." 'Sam' stepped forward, raising his hand. "Know that we are watching over all of you." I felt his hand as it pressed against my chest, but before I could even be startled, or put out that his hand was _there_, an incredible heat ran through me.

It felt like it was running through my entire body, but was centered in my chest over my heart. It wasn't so much painful as it was shocking and terrifying, but I felt like the breath was knocked out of me. Even as his hand pressed, I could feel... I could feel... It felt like...something was moving along my body, down in my bones. I felt the heat as it settled deep in my limbs, head and body. I felt weak but strong. Hot but cold at the same time.

My vision spun, sometimes sharpening enough to make me squint to protect my eyes, and then it would blur until I was once again squinting, trying to clear it. I panted, feeling, hearing, seeing... Opening my mouth, I tried to scream. I tried to speak, to inhale deeply, but it felt like a sudden pressure on my chest was crushing me.

Looking up, I tried to talk to the Primes, to ask them what they were doing to me.

They were gone.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Weird went to frightening, to confusing and impossible, then to terrifying and confusing. I couldn't make heads or tails of anything. Their words stuck with me, frightening me, yet somehow reassuring me at the same time. I couldn't ask what they were doing, or why, all I could do was feel. And feel I did, whether I liked it or not. I was cursed with remaining in that place, alone, terrified, frozen, as whatever they did moved through me._

_Finally, just when I thought I'd lose my mind, I fell into a pit of blackness._

_But not before experiencing a long set of cutscenes from both movies. Flashes of Megatron's evil stare, Optimus' kind optics. I saw Sidesipe's transformation and kickass moves. I saw Bumblebee talking to Sam and crying, and how he sank down to his knees in Egypt. I heard Mikeala's echoing voice screaming 'I love you's at Sam, and Sam screaming for Bumblebee and Optimus. I saw Wheelie and Jetfire and the femmes._

_I saw a small sliver of a shard. It lay on an empty street I didn't recognize. It glowed suddenly, lifting to the air and flying with a great speed off into the distance and Primus only knew where. There was a flash of terrified, pained blue optics, and the tiniest little whimper. The hum of a cannon, and the glow of a blaster._

_There were glowing orbs, the sparklings hanging in energon sacks back at the Decepticon base. The Fallen's optics stared at me, next to Megatron's and Starscream's. I heard Ironhide screaming for Will and Annabelle, Sam's parents calling him, Mikeala calling to him! I heard Leo's voice, Simmons' voice._

_Then I heard Soundwave's and Barricade's voices._

_But more than anything..._

_I saw Sideswipe's pained optics._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : July 30, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	15. Interrogations

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_My head was spinning, but not from dizziness. I was confused. I was losing my memory of the dream, even as I woke up. I only remember talking to the Primes, seeing Optimus die, and them doing something to help me stop Optimus from dying. Anything else was a blur, and the harder I tried to remember, the more I seemed to forget. _

_My mind went to Rika then._

_What did I just do? What would be the consequences of what I'd chosen, and why did I have a feeling I _might_ just regret it? Would she be safe? Could I convince Sunstreaker to help watch over her, and maybe take her with me? She might not have been _my_ Rika, but she felt and acted like her. Even if he somehow -though I highly doubted it- Sunstreaker agreed to help us, would she _want_ to come with me?_

_And what would happen with the Autobots? If I was...given the chance to help them, wouldn't leaving be a very _bad_ thing to do?_

_Would my head ever stop spinning with all these damn questions?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

The first thing I was aware of was a burning, aching discomfort through my entire body. It wasn't enough to make me scream in pain, or even really tempt me to head for pain medication, but it was there. Then I was made aware of beeping, and a discomfort in my wrist. It took me several attempts to force my eyes open, but when I did, I realized I was in a large, white, sterile room, and the first thought that crossed my mind was a hospital.

Considering the blurriness of my memories, which honestly could have been medication for all I knew, I began to wonder if any of it had really happened or if it was all in my head. I know, I know. I kept circling back to all this, but I was beginning to wonder if I _wanted_ this all to be real. I mean, all my life, I'd been raised to believe nothing like this could _ever_ happen. And then, the thought 'Why me?' kept running through my mind. Why _me_ of all people? What was so special about me, that I'd go through all this?

Then again, the idea of actually _meeting_ the Autobots and hanging out with them was really...well...cool. Exciting, but scary.

Then, as I looked around, I knew it was all real.

For one thing, the room was far too large to be a normal hospital room. There were no privacy curtains, or monitors and machines like I would have were machines, and monitors, but not familiar ones. I couldn't see any doors, just distant, indistinct shapes and figures on the walls, and a strange set of light blue li-_Oh_.

"I see you are awake." A figure stepped out of the shadows in the far corner of the room, and I realized those weren't 'lights', they were bright blue optics. All at once, it slammed into me that this was entirely real.

I wasn't as frightened as I thought I'd be, but then again, I'd had time to start getting used to it.

"How are you feeling?" Ratchet moved closer, and cocked his head to the side. I felt an odd warm tingling as he moved, and frowned. "Scans reveal that your system has..strangely adjusted to the radiation within your body. It is not dissipating, but nor is it progressing. Your injuries have adequately healed, but I would like you to remain in the..." He paused, and I think he grimaced. "Med bay. I am uncertain how the radiation will effect your body, though it _seems_ to have stabilized. Miss Cameron, I would very much like to know where your 'fake' shard of the allspark is."

My frown grew, and I moved. The uncomfortable heat seemed to flare up, but still wasn't quite painful. I pushed myself into a sitting position, and I felt restless. Ignoring his protests, I thought about his words, before pressing a hand over my chest. "I was...wearing it." My throat _did_ hurt, but it felt more like a sore throat. "On a chain."

"There was nothing attached to the broken chain caught in your hair."

I looked down, seeing that I was wearing my tank top and shorts, but my necklace was indeed gone. My frown never once faded, even as my hand brushed over my earrings almost absently, noting _they_ were still there. "I had it this morning. Maybe it fell off when I..." My mind was still a little blurry, but I remembered two bots fighting. Sunstreaker and Barricade. As Barricade's red optics flashed across my mind, it immediately took my mind to my dreams. I couldn't remember much, but I felt a feeling of urgency wash over me. "I... I need to...talk to Optimus."

"That is good, because he wishes to speak with you as well, but that does not answer my question."

"I don't...know the answer." I kept seeing Optimus falling sideways, bleeding energon, optics flickering in and out. My heartbeat increased, and I heard the beeping machine start kicking up a racket. Breathing deeply, I close my eyes, trying to focus on the blackness of the back of my lids. "Ratchet, what's happening to me? They said...they were gonna give me a chance." _Fat lot of good that does me. A chance for...what? Damn slippery dreams!_ Huh slippery dreams, Rika would have had a whole mess of comments for that one. I couldn't help the tiny snort, before shaking my head.

"Who said they were giving you a chance?"

"I...think..." I couldn't be sure, though. I just remembered kind red optics. Spirits. Cybertronian spirits. I tried to remember any scene from either movie that maybe I _could_ have been thinking off. The first movie was a bust, but the second movie... As if a lightbulb switched on in my head, I sat up even straighter. "The-I..." I looked up at Ratchet. "Holy mother, you're huge!" Seeing him lean back a little, I couldn't help but laugh. Despite everything, I was more shaken by the fact that I was actually facing the Autobot medic.

Not to mention, I think I felt like I was losing my mind. I was scared, excited, anxious... In fact, as I eyed the cords and lines coming from my body, I frowned again. "Can you take these out?"

"I'd rather not, but I don't believe I have a choice. We are all being moved to a more secure location, and you will be required to move." There was a low growl in his voice, as he leaned down, his fingers transforming into tool as he carefully pulled the cords out. "I have called for Optimus, but I would like you to take care when moving. Also, Rika Morgan and Sunstreaker have been waiting quite impatiently for an update of your condition."

"Rika and... Ok, Rika I get, but Sunstreaker?" I held up my hand as he pulled the cords free, bending it as he pulled an IV from the crook of my elbow. "Sunny doesn't give a hairy rat's ass about humans. You sure he's not just eager to get fixed up so he can repaint himself and return to his normal, cocky self?" Yeah, I went there, and I rolled my eyes at the same time.

There was a metallic choking sound, and Ratchet leaned back, turning away. "You sound like you know Sunstreaker very well."

I nodded, despite the fact he couldn't see it, and pushed myself into a standing position. "I know he's cocky and vain and only cares about himself or Sideswipe. Oh, and he's a talented painter, and very good at Jet Judo."

Ratchet spun quickly, opening his mouth to say something, then his optics narrowed. "Did I not say I wanted you to take it easy?" Pausing a moment, he vented and shook his head. "And how do you know all this about him?"

"He didn't tell you? You guys... Well, you're fictional characters where I come from. You are part of an extremely popular fandom, with millions of people who love you." He honestly looked startled by my words. "I mean, you don't actually _exist_ in my world, but I know what the cartoons, manga and movies covered. What...actually confuses me is that Sunstreaker, for all intents and purposes, wasn't on Earth in the movies. He...shouldn't be here." My frown deepened, and I sat down. I wasn't in pain still, but that uncomfortable feeling deep in my body refused to fade. "Or...something might happen to him."

"Do you believe he is in danger?"

"I don't know. It's possible. We're all in danger, but Sunstreaker might be in even more than everyone else. Sideswipe's on his way, but I don't think he's on Earth yet." It was actually disturbing how uncertain I found myself. I had no proof he wasn't on Earth in the first movie, and just hadn't united with the others for the battle. What if I'd unknowingly lied to Sunny? Shaking my head, I sighed. "Sunstreaker is only watching over me because of a deal. I promised him, if he helped and protected me for three days, I would tell him everything I knew. I just wanted time to feel better before I left town."

"Unfortunately, you cannot leave now." I froze, feeling my eyes widen, and Ratchet vented. "Sunstreaker told us of your fear of being imprisoned. We are uncertain what is happening, or whether or not to trust you, but for your own safety, you will need to remain near me, so I can keep an eye on the radiation within your body. I have not yet found a safe way to remove it, but I would like to keep an optic on it's progress and how your body reacts."

The fear was impossible to ignore, but I nodded. I knew that I couldn't get away from a base if I tried. It wasn't _just_ Will and Ironhide I'd be running from, but quite literally _everyone_ and _everybot_ here. Not to mention, I wasn't in shackles up to my neck, and I seemed relatively free, otherwise. That had to count for something, right? "Optimus?"

"He is standing outside." There was silence a second, and then the swooshing of a door opening. When I looked, I was startled to see a bot entering. On one hand, he was way bigger than the others, but at the same time, it just hit me that he wasn't as big as I'd initially thought. Twenty-eight feet didn't seem like much next to old trees and such, but next to a human...

"Isabella Cameron." Optimus Prime inclined his head, his regal baritone exactly the same as in the movie, and Ratchet stepped through the door behind him, letting it shut and giving us privacy. "I would introduce myself, but I believe you already know who I am."

I wasn't entire sure how to answer that. On one hand, I knew with-holding anything would be cause for them to distrust me, but on the other, I was afraid of telling them too much information and making them distrust me anyways, and I told him so. Seeing him standing there, I felt two major emotions run through me.

Awe and terror.

Awe, because he was regal and strong, practically radiating power from just _standing_, but still somehow managing not to seem overly threatening as he did so. Terrifying because... Well, he was a giant alien robot, for Christ sake! He was from another planet! He was _huge_, and he... He held my fate in the palm of his equally as massive hands.

He nodded a little, moving slowly and warily to crouch next to the bed I sat on. I realized that, really looking at the contours and shape of his face... "Wow, you really look young." I cocked my head to the side, and watched as he did the same, blinking. Then I realized what I'd just blurted and grimaced, feeling my cheeks burned hotly. "Uh, sorry." I shook my head, looking up into the kind optics of Optimus Prime, and made a decision. He was a good bot. A good, kind, fair, loyal bot. I owed him the truth, even if I was afraid how it would affect me. "I know who you are. You're Optimus Prime, formerly known as Orion Pax, and you are the last living Prime."

He stared at me silently, head locked to the side slightly. The only outward reaction he had to my news was his optics narrowing ever so slightly, and his metallic lips straightening grimly.

"I...asked to speak to you because..." And there was that damn image of him dying again. My eyes burned, and I barely resisted the urge to curl in on myself. "Well, I guess you have questions. I have answers. I have...so many answers, but you're most definitely _not_ going to like them all. I mean, _I_ don't even like them all, or understand half of them, but..." Trailing off, I realized I was rambling and clamped my mouth shut so fast, I nearly bit my cheek.

His optics had narrowed more and more, until he looked like he was squinting me, and the bot had long, narrow optics to begin with. It was a...frightening look on his face, but he nodded, blinking, and his optics went back to normal. "I see. Perhaps my first question would be... To please explain how it is you know us all? These...cartoons, manga and movies?"

I nodded and began explaining it to him. I started with a detailed report of the first movie, watching as his optics widened as I went into detail about when he highlighted the map on the glasses. I knew, if nothing else, _that_ had to convince him, at least a little, about what I was saying. They were in a secure, remote location, Autobots only. Not even the Decepticons would have known about that meeting. I even quoted things he'd said. I explained about the battle, pausing with difficulty when I mentioned Jazz's death at the hands of Megatron.

By the time I was done summarizing, in detail, the first Movie, Optimus Prime had seated himself cross legged on the ground, and I could tell I had his undivided attention. "So this is how you know of us, and the true events of Mission City. I...find myself believing you, however I am still uncomfortable with the knowledge you possess. How do you know of Sunstreaker?"

"He and Sideswipe were a major part of the fandom." I knew he'd already Googled the term. I'd mentioned it like...a dozen times. "They were some of the more popular characters for their looks, wit, great fighting skills, and their unwavering dedication to each other. Although Bay, the director of the movies, messed them up. They _were_ red and yellow Lamborghini twins in the cartoons and manga, then he turned Sideswipe into a silver 2009 Stingray Corvette Concept, and there's rumor that Sunstreaker was _supposed_ to be a Ferrari, which, as you already know, he is." I paused then, frowning. _Maybe Bay's magical?_ The idea made me want to bury my face on the large...whatever I was sitting on, and snort, but I managed to control myself.

He nodded slightly. "Captain Lennox has searched your home-"

"What?" I was on my feet, swaying slightly a moment, and I made a vague slapping motion to ward off his incoming hands, as it faded. "Jeez, talk about home invasion! Couldn't you have, I dunno, _waited_ until I woke up and _asked_? I might have been scared out of my mind, but-" Shaking my head, I plopped back down, my anger fading as quickly as it had come. _I can't blame them. I probably would have told them where to go with the usual vehemence. _"Never mind, what were you saying?"

"We found your movies, but the discs were blank." If he was the least bit perturbed by my interruption, he didn't show it. "So you have already told Sunstreaker that your allegiance is with us, I am honestly not pleased by this. It only puts you in more danger." He vented, shaking his head. "But from the mark on your chest, we cannot simply let you be and hope you live a normal life. Also, with Ratchet's concern over your health, this is also the same."

I nodded, realizing they were right. On the upside, it didn't _sound_ like he was going to lock me up in a tiny little cell and throw away the key.

"Ratchet informed me over internal communications that you showed concern for Sunstreaker's well being. Can you explain?"

This was easy, at least in my opinion. "The year is 2007, right?" Ok, not so easy. It had taken me a while to figure out that part, and only because I looked at my computer calendar. I'd thought it was a mistake on the part of the computer. A virus or something. With everything else going on, it was surprisingly not as important to know the year, when you thought you were losing your mind to begin with. "Well, between now and the next two years, several Autobots are going to arrive on Earth." At least, I hoped so. And I really hoped I didn't sound as concerned as I felt. "Sideswipe is one of them, but Sunstreaker wasn't with him. In fact, there was no sign of him at all. We all figured something happened to him out in space, and he just never arrived. Then the rumor set he was supposed to appear 'two years later' in the third movie."

"Yet he is here now."

I nodded. "And if that's the case, it's _possible_ he just...was on Earth the entire time but not with the Autobots. But he's here with you now, so that doesn't make sense."

"He did not know where we were, until he met you. You may have changed it when you told him to look for us."

"Or he may _still_ be in danger." I pointed out, raising an eyebrow. The idea didn't sit well with me. "Do you know why I interfered with his battle with Barricade? That is, I assume he told you about it, considering he had to explain the energon in my system." _That_ idea didn't sit well with me, either. "It was because I didn't want him to die, or _offline_, or whatever. I wanted him and Sideswipe to reunite. I still do, more than anything. They're...half of one another. They're the single most important thing in the universe to each other." If I had something to lean against, I would have sagged back. I was getting tired already, and there was so much passion in the topic at hand. At least for me. I felt...drained.

"You feel personally responsible?" His head cocked to the side, as if he could not understand it.

The expression was vaguely familiar, and I squinted up at him. "There's something else." I struggled to wrack my brain. Why did his inquisitive expression seem so familiar? I had a flash of red optics instead of blue, and would have jumped, but they weren't evil like Megatron's. "Someone... No..." My voice, I could hear it coming out, but it was distracted. "Some_thing_... My dream!" My eyes widened, and I felt my heart jolt in my chest. "The Primes visited me in my dream!"

I'd never seen anybot jump the way Prime did. He jerked back, optics going wide, and his entire body stiffened. I didn't know if it was from my words, or the violent jerking reaction I gave, when I shouted. "The ancient Primes? What did they say to you?" I couldn't tell if he believed me, but he seemed to quickly control himself.

"I...don't remember. Not a lot. I remember, they said something about giving me a...gift...an ability to make a change, save lives?" I felt like I was getting it both right and wrong at the same time. "Then one touched my chest, over my heart." I pressed a hand there absently. "And they said..." My eyes narrowed as I thought. "They said..." _Something about Orion. Something about watching over us... _"Oh! They're proud of you!"

He seemed to relax, optics widening even more. His jaw dropped slightly, and he stared at me like he was dazed. He snapped out of it quickly, however, and nodded. "I am greatly appreciative of your words. I do not know...what to think about this dream, but I believe we are making the right choice to keep you under the watch of an Autobot at all times. Not because we don't trust you, but because we need to keep you safe."

And that I could take, I guess. In this utterly insane world where so little made sense, at least I could take comfort in the thought that I wasn't going to be completely alone in this strange world. Maybe...just maybe things would be ok.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Optimus' interrogation continued on. The more he questioned me, surprisingly, the more relaxed I felt in his presence. The more real it all got and the more I accepted all this was happening. He asked me about what to expect from the Decepticons, and I told him about them being in practically every continent, searching for something. I hesitated in telling him what; was he supposed to know yet?_

_I told him about the threat in the second movie, glossing over a lot of the details as I struggled to think on _what_ was safe to talk about, and what wasn't. I was so tired, I could barely think clear enough to tell him much, and my words were halting._

_Finally, exhausted, I told him about the bots I knew were incoming. The Arcee triplets, the Chevy twins, Jolt and Sideswipe. He looked pleased more help was coming, until I told him about the Decepticons waiting in space for Soundwave's orders._

_I didn't think it was possible, but I _think_...Optimus' face actually _paled_._

_Huh, I didn't know metal colors could change like that._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : July 31, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	16. Diego Garcia

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Rika threw a fit when she saw me next. The first thing she did was bitch me out for passing out like that, as if somehow it was _my_ fault. Then she hugged me and cried, babbling on and on that she _knew_ I wasn't _her_ Bella, but that didn't matter, because I still was. Yeah, just a little confusing, huh? Then she went on about how big an aft Sunstreaker was, and no 'aft' wasn't her wording. It was more my polite wording._

_Finally, Sunstreaker came in to see me. He glared at me for what felt like forever, and a later check of time with Ratchet _proved_ it was practically an hour he _did_ stare at me silently, just seething. Then he spat about how much he hated humans, growled at me, turned, and left._

_After such a long day, I was actually looking forward to sleep, and luckily, Ratchet decided he wasn't going to poke or prod me until the next morning. Of course, he didn't _tell_ me that until said morning arrived. I don't think I've _ever_ been so happy to get out of a med bay, under guard or no. The only thing that made it better was that we were moving the same day, and Rika and I were riding in Optimus himself._

_Yay! And this time, there's no sarcasm involved! After all, he made a kickass truck, and I'd always wanted to see inside, and at the same time, I didn't need to put up with Sunstreaker's bitching all day._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**(Next Day)**

I watched soldiers dashing back and forth, before turning to the man with me. Lennox himself was looking over his military uniform, a little dazed. I opened my mouth, intending to ask him about what was up, but then paused. _The last time I met the man, I ran for my life. Not the best first impression._ As if sensing my stare, he turned to me, and I grimaced a little when he raised an eyebrow. "Um, look, I'm...sorry about before."

He stared at me warily, like he wasn't sure what to make of me. Then he shook his head. "I heard you were expecting to be locked away like a prisoner." I nodded, and he nodded back, adjusting his uniform a little. "Then your reaction was expected. Hey, at least you didn't hit me or anything." And he smiled. It looked strained, but sort of genuine.

I shook my head, chuckling slightly. "Attacking was the last thing on my mind. I just wanted to get away."

"Understandable. So...what's the staring about? Just wanted to apologize?"

"Actually, no. You look kinda out of it."

He nodded, seeming to straighten a little. "These movies of yours didn't cover that?"

I tensed. I knew that would come back to bite me on the ass. "Well, no. It told me a _little _about what the humans were doing, but not the entire two years between movies." I tried to think a moment, about what would have _him_ so out of it, and it hit me. "I know you get promoted. Is that it?" He looked at me, startled, and I leaned forward a little to see if he had a name tag or something. "Are you a Major yet?"

There was a snort behind me, and I spun to find Epps approaching me. He, at least, seemed more at ease. "You mean other than being a major pain in the ass?"

Now my laugh turned genuine. "I think I should have expected that." I was still overwhelmed, and whenever I let myself think too long about it, it really got to me that all this was _real_. I was _here_. I felt like there was a threat of panic and hyperventilating. But when I relaxed, and went with the flow, it wasn't so bad.

Will sighed, smirking, and shook his head. "If you must know, yes, I was promoted. So watch yourself _Robert,_ that's 'major pain in the ass, _sir'_." With his smirk fixed in place, he moved forward, and I immediately fell into place. "You know, this movie of yours, it's all kinda weird you know about it. I just...keep feeling thrown. I don't know what you know and what you don't."

"Try my point of view." I added dryly. "You're not even supposed to exist, _Major_. None of this is supposed to exist, so if you wanna talk about being 'thrown'..." Trailing off, I sighed a little. "On the upside, it's also _really_ cool. I mean, I actually get to _meet_ the heros millions of people only wished they could meet. I have an Autobot _bodyguard_, even if he hates my squishy guts." Rubbing at my chest a little, I wandered onto the tarmac of the Hoover Dam base, to where several giant C17s waited. _Well, I guess I know how we're getting there._

"So...what do you know about Ironhide?" There was an honest, wary curiosity in Lennox's eyes as he stepped casually past multiple soldiers.

I stayed close to him, and sighed. "He's the Autobot Weapons Specialist. Many people believe he's sparkmated, or I guess humans could call it 'soulmated' to a femme, or _female_ bot known as Chromia. He's tough on the outside, but has a big spark, or heart. He's strong, smart, tends to shoot first ask later. He's also... Well, he might be a little awkward at first, but he'll be amazing with human children." I kept that vague, but hinted at his supposed relationship to Annabelle.

He nodded as we approached a large C17 with three Autobots outside it. Sunstreaker stood easily, eyeing the humans around him with disgust, but staying quiet as long as they stayed away from him. I was still struck by his similarities to Sideswipe, but again, the biggest difference was his feet. Optimus was crouching, talking to Secretary Keller easily, and Ratchet immediately approached, stepping carefully.

I felt that tingle again, and narrowed my eyes at the big bot. "Do you mind? I have enough radioactive issues without you adding to them, thank you very much."

He only raised an optic ridge. "Scans show very slow, stable progress of the radiation within your bodily structure. And my scans will not _add_ to the radiation within you, femme. They are perfectly safe for humans."

"Oh yeah." Rolling my eyes, I scoffed. "Because you've had generations of practice before coming to Earth, right? I mean, you probably keep a pocket-human just to test and calibrate your sensors and scans." Realizing not only the other bots, but a lot of the humans were watching me with wide eyes and optics, I paused. "Uh, I'm joking, by the way." I looked to Lennox, who looked honestly worried. "Joking! Jeez, they protect humans, not experiment on them." Then I grinned toothily, feeling absolutely no humor. "That's what human governments are for!" The shudder was impossible to ignore or hide.

"Well, I suppose it's a good thing you are going with the Autobots, then." Secretary Keller approached warily. "They have already stubbornly refused to allow you into the care of specialists to try and understand and remove the radiation within your body. Apparently, it was part of your fears, and they believe Ratchet here is the only one capable of helping you."

Looking to the bots, I sighed in relief, and smiled. "Oh sweet Primus, _thank_ you! The last thing I wanna do is make Roswell a reality." I moved forward, leaving Lennox behind as I stepped up beside Optimus, smiling up to him. "I owe you a thorough washing and waxing, big bot!" When he only cocked his head to the side curiously, I felt the blush staining my cheeks. "Uh, you've never had that before, have you?" He shook his head, and I smiled widely. "Oh, this is gonna be fun! You'll love it, promise." Then my eyes went to Sunstreaker, who also looked vaguely curious. "But you're first, for saving my life, and _you_ are going to adore it. It'll make you feel and look better than ever."

I could see the way his eyes flashed, and despite him feigning annoyance and dark glowers at me -or maybe he wasn't feigning, this _was_ Sunstreaker after all- I knew he was interested.

Shaking my head, I sighed, turning back to Keller. "Can you do me a favor?" He raised an eyebrow, and I raised my hands. "Nothing big, but... If you ever hear of a man named Norman Galloway, please keep him _away_ from the bots. He's going to cause a whole stir of trouble, and unintentionally will help the Decepticons later." Keller was one of the bigger bot supporters. If there was anyone who could know anything about what I know, or someone to give advice to, to help, it was him.

He looked like he was going to reply, but a soldier exited the plane then, catching everyone's attention. "Alright, we're ready to go at any time. The sooner the better. We have a long flight ahead of us." Turning, he walked back up the loading bay and disappeared inside of the plane.

"I would be interested in finding out more about this Norman Galloway." Keller looked at me. "I trust you can fill Optimus in, and he'll notify me of the information. Call it a...stipulation for my assistance."

I nodded immediately. "I don't know a lot, but he's going to come in here, rag on the Autobots, and by that time, Soundwave will be in orbit, attached to a satelite. He'll be accusing the Autobots of causing a lot of damage and casualties while fighting the Decepticons; he'll accidentally give up the location of the Allspark shard in their holding, as well as Megatron's location, and Soundwave will pick it up by hacking into even the most secure communications link." The plane behind me began to start up, the propellers starting a fierce wind that began to blow my hair wildly around me. I brushed it back, trying to keep it out of my face. "And he'll send Ravage and another mini-con after it, as well as five Decepticons after Megatron's body."

"Now that we know this, we can stop him." Optimus vowed behind me, standing to his full height. "However, we will need to prepare."

"And you will have the assistance of the military at your disposal. Take care of yourselves." Keller waved, before turning and ducking through the throngs of troops, heading towards the base once again. I liked him. He was an honest, good man.

I paused then, looking around. I was looking for Rika, who was conspicuously absent, but when I saw her blonde hair swishing this way, I relaxed. I smiled, as she ran over, leaving her own guard behind, and stood at my side. Then I grimaced. _I never wanted her involved in this_. "How are you doing?"

"I'm not the one who decided to drink alien blood."

I grimaced yet again. "Gee, thanks for the reminder." Sighing, I hugged her close. "I mean, how are you doing with all this?" As I pulled back, I looked over to the bots, who were conversing quietly, even as Ironhide loaded up on another C17 with the majority of the human soldiers. "You know, with the Cybertronians?"

"It's all really overwhelming, but Optimus has been really nice." Said bot looked over, and I watched as Rika waved at him, and he raised a hand, inclining his head at her. When she turned back, I could see the excitment glowing in her eyes. "So this is really cool! I mean, when you really think about it, cool, sentient alien _robots_ who turn into kickass vehicles? How is that not cool?"

Even as we watched, Sunstreaker transformed, idling just outside the plane as if waiting for something. He looked good as new, and I had to commend Ratchet for his work. There wasn't a ding or scratch that I could make out, and it was a relief. Next was Ratchet, who went ahead inside, and finally, Optimus transformed, and I looked at Rika.

Then I snorted on a laugh, causing her to give me a dirty look. "Sorry! It's just...if you sit there drooling at him, he might change his mind about letting you inside." I laughed again as she flipped me off, before wiping at her mouth, a glint of amusement in her eyes. "Oh my God, you should do that inside Sunstreaker." I think we both cracked up at this point, and the Ferrari's engine gunned, before almost hesitantly boarding the plane, leaving us and Optimus behind.

Will and Epps had gone ahead aboard, the plane with a few other soldiers.

Taking a deep breath, I moved forward. "Well, let's go, I guess." To say I was nervous would be an understatement. I'd noticed no trace of Sam or Mikeala, or the Lennox family or any of the other humans coming along but the soldiers. That could only mean they were more or less going back to their lives. Bumblebee's absense also confirmed that thought. So yeah, I was nervous. I'd only have Rika to really talk to.

We moved towards the semi, which opened it's doors for us, and I hesitated, looking up at the massive truck. It was a little awkward, because I'd never actually climbed into a semi before, but luckily there were steps. I climbed up and inside, and sat in the passenger seat, and the door shut behind me quietly, before the seatbelt came down, gently buckling me in.

"I trust you are feeling better, Miss Cameron?"

"Bella." It was almost an instinctual response, and I sighed a little before elaborating. "I prefer to be called Bella." And yes, I knew that I sounded a lot like 'Bella' of Twilight. I wasn't her. 'Nuff said. I just like to be called 'Bella'. Sue me, those are my preferences.

There was a rumble as Rika was belted in, and the truck began moving towards the plane. "Bella, then."

Nodding a little, I looked around. Again, the truck was filled with a leather-like interior. The sleeper was huge. It had room for a fridge, a very small dresser for clothing, I guessed, and a double bed that looked surprisingly comfortable. There was even a blanket folded at the bottom edge. It looked cozy. The front part of the cab was pristine, just like the outside of the truck, and like Bumblebee there was a little air freshener.

"This. Is. _Sweet_!" Rika was giggling in the front seat, her hands over the steering wheel as she pretended to drive the truck.

I giggled with her, watching as Optimus backed into the plane, between Ratchet and Sunstreaker, with Sunstreaker on my side and Ratchet on Rika's. I looked down at the Ferrari, and watched as it almost leaned away from the close quarters with the massive semi. _Hey, 'Streaker, I think you got a scratch!_ Snickering to myself, I shook my head. If I did that, he'd probably transform and panic, and bring the whole plane down.

...I'd wait until we got to the new base to do it then.

"You know what, Rika?" I leaned over and spoke quietly, praying Optimus' rolled up windows would keep the yellow Ferrari from hearing us. "We should _so_ prank Sunstreaker."

"Why?"

"Wh-Oh yeah, you don't know." The truck shivered ever so slightly, and I think Optimus gave a choked metallic laugh. He knew. I patted the dash slightly. Out of all the bots that intimidated me, once you got past his height and _really_ deep voice, Optimus was one of the ones that was easier to relax with. "Because Sunstreaker and Sideswipe are _well_ known for their pranks, especially on Ironhide, Prowl and Ratchet." I grinned evily as she raised an eyebrow. "So I thought we could get him back, and maybe show him that humans are smarter than he thinks."

She seemed to think for a long moment, as if she wasn't sure what to think. Then she grinned widely at me. "When do we begin?"

"As soon as we find out what kind of item list we can get. Hey Optimus, are we like..guests, or prisoners, or do we have full access to the public sections of the base...?" I knew I wasn't being locked up, which was nice, but how far did the generosity extend?

"I am not certain. I assume you will be allowed into the more public areas of the base. I would ask you pick your prank ideas wisely. Many humans are still not comfortable with any of this."

I found myself patting his dash board again, sympathetically. "They will. You'll find yourselves with a lot of human allies soon, I promise." Then I tapped my head. "I know." _Holy hell this is weird, but...cool._

There was an actual chuckle this time. "I appreciate the sentiments. If you require anything for your...pranks, I suggest you see to William Lennox about permission to move to and from the base, and Sunstreaker will be going with you."

"And make sure he doesn't target any of you guys?" I raised an eyebrow, plans already forming. "Although I'd _really_ like to see Ironhide get knocked down a peg or two." Giggling hysterically, I shook my head. "Oh Primus, that would be hilarious!" The truck shook under me, as Optimus apparently agreed, and I laughed all the harder. Even Rika was giggling. "I already have tons of plans."

"The first thing we do then, is get rooms close together and get planning." Rika's grin was as evil as mine felt. "I'm actually looking forward to this."

"Me too."

We giggled and planned the entire trip to the base, forming some pretty decent prank plans, mostly centering around Sunstreaker and that gorgeous Ferrari car form of his. He already hated me, but by the time we were done, he might _just_ forget about the 'no harming humans' rule and try to kill me.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Chaos. Everything at the base was pure chaos. We spent hours acclimating the newbie troops to the Autobots, then had to find our rooms. Luckily, I was given back my camera and purse, which also held Sunstreaker's little phone in it. We managed to find a set of rooms right across the halls from each other and stole them before anyone else could, and I dragged a small suitcase of clothing that Optimus had been carrying before hand for me._

_Then we unpacked, relaxed, and took a few more hours to really realize we were now more or less living on a top secret military base. Getting prank ideas together was going to take a while, because the Autobots had to get settled in, and the soldiers had to set things up, but Rika and I were more or less just...taking it all in. We borrowed a notebook and began planning away._

_We even skipped dinner when Epps stopped by to tell us tonight's special was 'mystery meat'._

_Rika's excuse was that she didn't know what 'mystery meat' would give her, and mine was... Well, I honestly wasn't hungry. I hadn't been hungry all day, and I hadn't eaten a thing all day. Honestly, I might have been worried about it, if I stopped to give it more than a two minute thought._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : July 31, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	17. Repainting

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_So Rika and I initially planned to be the base pranksters, but I had a little bit of worry. Sunstreaker loved pranks, but usually with his twin around. Would he actually accept them as _just_ pranks if they kept shoving into his face that Sides wasn't around? I decided to leave off pranking _him_ to be safe. That still left Optimus, Ratchet and Ironhide, however, and maybe Will and Epps._

_I mean, Will was really wary about me, but if I showed him I was just your typical prankster of a girl and not an actual _threat_, maybe he'd lighten up a little? Epps would probably enjoy a good prank or two. We'd also have to be careful what sort of pranks we did, because with half the soldiers jumping at shadows, the last thing I wanted to do was set the entire base into an uproar._

_For now, Rika and I decided to stick with easy, quick, simple pranks that were straight forward and required little in the way of materials. Practice pranks, if you would. We'd work our way up._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**(Next Day****)**

"So whose first?" Rika grimaced as she sat across from me. We were sitting alone at a table in the back corner, in the cafeteria were only a handful of people were eating. We'd also managed to nab our own table, away from everyone else. Poking at her runny eggs, she grimaced and shrugged. "Ugh, I prefer my eggs sunny side up."

I coughed a little on the surprisingly edible salad, choking a moment, before taking a drink of water to help the food go down. At her look, I smirked and raised an eyebrow, coughing again and swallowing thickly. "You do realize the twins go by the names 'Sunny' and 'Sides' with each other, right?"

She blinked a moment, before a look of realization crossed her features, and she giggled. "There's a mental image I didn't need. Anyways, I think we should leave the Autobots until later, when people stop glaring at us like they're waiting on us to grow a second head."

I snorted and rolled my eyes. "Or a long scaled tail, or a ten foot long metallic tongue." Yeah, I was thinking of Alice, here, and when Rika gave me an odd look, I explained that to her, going into detail about the Decepticon pretender at the college. That sent her laughing, when I told her about Sam's incredibly girly scream. "Yeah." I pointed to her as she cracked up, giggling histerically. "That's how everyone reacted."

"So...? You never answered my question."

I smirked a little and shrugged. "We only have two humans we can really work with. Well...and one Autobot." I was thinking here. "Optimus might appreciate a good prank, and would probably be harder to wake up than two twitchy human soliders."

"And I'd rather not get shot."

Nodding a little, I grinned now. "Well, I heard the Autobots will be spending the majority of today recharging, because they hadn't had a chance to do so with all the excitement. That means...they should probably all still be out." And considering Diego Garcia had just begun building attachments to the base that would act as offices and private rooms for the Autobots, that meant they were still spending their recharging moments in the main hangar.

"What's the plan?"

Outining it to her, I watched as her eyes lit up with a nearly incredulous grin. More than once, she clapped a hand over her mouth, muffling her giggles, and we quickly finished eating before getting up to find supplies. Well, for me, it was more force feeding. I somehow _still_ wasn't hungry, but I ate because I noticed this morning that I was a little dizzy and weak.

Once we were done, we headed off in search of supplies.

"We'll need a bright color." Rika was opening and closing every door marked 'supply closet' or 'storage' until she ducked into one. I quickly followed, chasing her to a pile of paint cans. "Pink, yellow, white, bright blue, neon green." She dug through the cans, before lifting one, and grabbing a bucket full of different size and shaped brushes. "Let's go with white. It'll be a stark contrast, and I've already got other plans for the pink."

"And you'll wanna leave the yellow for 'Streaker'."

She snickered. "Nice name."

Shrugging, I let her lead us out, and grinned at soldiers who gave us a suspicious, questioning the look. "It's not any variation of 'Sunny' so it works." I nodded at the soldiers, before grabbing the can and letting them see that it was white paint and nothing poisonous or explosive. Then we wandered on. Now for the tough part, we need to find the Autobots. Just which one was the main hangar?

Then I paused. "You know, we didn't factor in that he might be recharging in his truck form." An idea hit me then, and I cocked my head to the side a little, double checking the brushes. "We need to head back to the supply closet."

Twenty minutes later, we had another can of paint and were walking quietly into the third hangar. True to form, the third time was the charm. The first bot I noticed was Ratchet, idling softly while soldiers milled around him. His human holographic form was active, checking out different soldiers, including Epps and Lennox. I still couldn't get over it. Sure, I'd read about holographic forms, but other than Barricade and Blackout, I'd never _seen_ one, and the Autobots apparently put even more detail into theirs.

A little ways back, Ironhide was completely still and humans were keeping a wide, quiet berth around him. Then there was Sunstreaker. People were almost on his ass, some actually reaching out towards him, only to pull back last moment. I felt my lips twitching when I realized they were all in their vehicle forms. Lastly came Optimus, way back in a far corner, still fairly shadowed and out of the way. No humans travelled out of their way to go near him, and I exchanged a grin with Rika, before we idly wandered over.

We were stopped, however, on our way by Will, who rushed over looking suspicious.

"What're you two doing?" He eyed the cans warily.

"Oh, gee..." I scoffed and shook my head. "I thought we'd feed paint into Prime's fuel tanks so when he farts, it'll rain neon green and white." Rika snorted next to me and I raised an eyebrow at Will, my own lips shaking. "Or maybe we'll go for the direct route and just pain a big ol' green and white bulleye on the tarmac outside. I'm positive the Decepticons would know what _that_ means." Hello sarcasm, old friend. How are you, today?

Epps had snuck up along side Will, and snorted at my words. He grinned broadly, before raising an eyebrow. "If you're gonna be hellraising, ya better be careful. I like a good prank like the next..well...prankster." He chuckled a little. "But I also like continuing to live."

"Don't worry. Our 'target' tends to use verbal ammo to the kind that melts your face off." At their pause, I shrugged and turned. "C'mon Ri, before he wakes up." We wandered over to the large semi, and I paused looking over it's form. It was a beautiful truck, the paint job amazing. It almost felt blasphemous to paint over it. The only saving grace was that paint could easily be changed back.

I put the neon green paint can down, and carefully worked on prying the lid off. Then I flicked my fingers around the truck, running them along the paint and seeing if there was even a minor shudder. No movement and no voice. Grinning to Rika, I dipped a paint brush into the paint, and she did the same with the white, and we got to work.

I don't know how long we worked. At one point, Epps even came over and gave us a hand, grinning from ear to ear, his pearly white teeth a stark contrast with his darker skin. As we worked, I was aware of the sounds of metal gears rearranging, and paused, feeling like my heart was going to stop. I chanced a look over my shoulder, even as Epps carefully hopped up onto the roof with the help of a long ladder, and did a double take at the pair of optics watching us...curiously.

Sunstreaker stood there, leaning forward slightly with his head cocked to the side. His optics caught me, and he raised an optic ridge silently. "That paint does not suit him." He frowned, suspicious, annoyed, but somehow appearing intrigued, too.

"Shh! Shhhhh!" I quickly put a finger to my lips, and grimaced as the truck seemed to shift ever so slightly. When it settled back down, I glared at Sunstreaker darkly. "It's a prank!" I hissed out quickly, quietly, before turning away and looking at the truck. I knew it wouldn't be funny, but as I stated before, it was a practice prank, just to test his response.

It was mischief, and the fun came from the adrenaline coursing through my body at the thought of possibly getting caught. I waited, watching as Epps worked on the hood as though he didn't feel a thing. Rika was on his roof, also working, and I relaxed, before continuing my painting.

It took us a couple hours, with Epps' help, and by the time I was done, I turned to find Ratchet glaring at me rather darkly. Running for my life crossed my mind, before he beckoned me over, and I startled as Will took the brush from my hand, helping Rika and Epps close up the paint cans with snickers, before I was gently shoved Ratchet's way. I leveled them with a glare, before taking a deep breath and wandering over.

"You suffer from an unusual radiation poison, and insist on straining your system. My scans-" I wasn't even aware he'd scanned me, which just went to show that I wasn't paying attention. "-show that the radiation has spread further, beginning to encompass your major organs, and that you have not eaten as much as my research shows humans are meant to eat."

"I haven't been hungry." I glanced back at Optimus, before digging my new cell phone out of my pocket. I was lucky, it had a camera on it, and even as Sunstreaker cast me a curious glance, surprisingly free of hostility -however briefly that would last- I clicked a picture, smirking. Then I turned back to Ratchet. "I'm fine, really. I'm not in pain, and I really just haven't been hungry."

His optics narrowed. "This is unsettling news. I would like to scan you on a deeper level, to see if the radiation is effecting anything beyond your skeletal structure. It will be more uncomfortable, but should not be painful." He knelt down. "However, I would like to take this to a more private room, where I may concentrate better." His optics narrowed at a group of loudly talking soldiers.

There was the rumble of a truck engine then, and I held up a hand towards Ratchet. Turning, I spotted Rika nearly skidding away from the truck form, grinning, and behind Epps, who had a camera in his hand. The paint, thankfully it was quick dry, was looking surprisingly good, but at the same time, Sunny was right. A white base with neon green flames just did _not_ suit the regal Autobot leader.

_Huh, psychodelic._

So you can imagine how odd he looked as he transformed, standing at his full height. Soldiers stopped and stared, some pointing, others snickering. It wasn't all _that_ funny a prank, but I waited nervously as he glanced at everyone, before looking down at himself. The sound of surprise that came from his throat was amusing, and watching as he blinked blankly, I snickered a little.

Admittedly, I was a little worried. I mean, I had no idea what he'd say or do, or how he'd react to a prank, especially being so new on Earth. He could blow up and channel Megatron, for all I knew. After all, they _were_ brothers. However, he just seemed to stand there and take it all in.

"Rock on, Prime dude!" Rika called up, causing Epps to choke on his laugh, and cracking up herself.

"Dude, my hands are like...sooo big!" Will added with a smirk. "Well, in your case, they really are, too."

"That's enough high grade for you." Sunstreaker added with his usual confident, cocky smirk, folding his arms over his chest.

Prime raised his arms in front of him, optics slowly narrowing, before he slanted a look over at Sunstreaker. "Sunstreaker..." His tone was resigned and slightly annoyed, and he turned, looking around at his legs and back.

"It wasn't me!"

"It wasn't him!"

Our voices rang out at once, and I ducked my head as Sunstreaker's head swivelled my way, optics wide. Taking a breath, I stepped forward. "Sorry, Prime. It was a toss up between you, Lennox or Epps." The soldiers shot me dirty looks, eyes narrowing, and I straightened. "And you seemed like the least likely to shoot first and ask questions later, if you woke up with strangers crawling all over you." I paused then, with my mind doing a fantastic swan dive into the gutter, listening to Rika's amused, half muffled snicker, and felt my cheeks burn. "Or rather, if you woke up with people standing over or around you, out of nowhere."

"I see." He seemed to relax, once again looking over his paint. "Is this what you were referring to, a 'wash and wax'?"

"No, no! That just uses water and soap to clean you, and then wax to make the paint even shinier than usual." Grimacing a little, I made a show of covering my eyes. "Mind if we change the paint back? Sorry, but I think you're borderline glowing there." I began to walk towards him, when a large hand dropped down in front of me, causing me to yelp as I was grabbed and lifted. "Hey! Watch the hand!"

Rika was shaking her head with laughter, and I rolled my eyes. I could _guess_ the thoughts rolling through her mind, and faceplanted into Ratchet's hand to try and stem the burning of my cheeks.

"I do apologize for interrupting your plans, but _we_ have an appointment."

Grumbling a little, I hesitantly glanced back. "I really don't _need_ to be scanned on a subatomic level, you know. Do I still have bones?" He hesitated before nodding. "Do I still have human organs and blood?" He nodded again. "I can breathe, eat, move, talk, scream if absolutely necessary. I know what two plus two equals, and I could probably tell how many fingers you're holding up from a mile away." Don't get me wrong, I didn't hate doctors or hospitals, but everything I'd read and seen, Ratchet wasn't exactly the most gentle doctor out there.

Though considering he's massive, made of metal, and several thousands of tonnes heavy, and he handled humans with amazingly gentleness, I could be wrong.

He raised an optic ridge. "Be that as it may, your health is a great concern."

"Has her health worsened, Ratchet?"

"I'm not certain, but it most certainly hasn't changed for the better."

"Yeah, because if Ratchet wanted to scan me for the sheer perverse nature of seeing my innards, he wouldn't be standing here right now. He'd be in pieces across the entire base." I grinned sarcastically, rolling my eyes down at Rika.

Optimus stared down at me. "We can only hope Ratchet will find a way to cure you of the radiation poisoning before your health worsens much more. After he is done with you, _then_ you may 'wash and wax' whomever you wished to. I have meetings to attend to today."

"Then you'd better do something about that paint, boss-man." Ri shouted up at him, stepping out in the open. "It'll be kinda hard to take you seriously if you're glowing in the dark."

I had to bury my face in Ratchet's index finger again to keep from laughing. I suddenly had the image of him standing tall and proud in the middle of a large room filled with human delegates, when the power goes out. But that's alright, he's glowing in the dark, and everyone can see their paperwork. The laugh was muffled in Ratchet's finger and I shook my head, trying to dispel the image.

"Are you volunteering?" His deep, resonating voice intoned with a hint of something. "I _will_ require help with repainting my back."

"Sure! I'll do it, and I'm sure Epps would love to help." Rika slapped said man on the back, ignoring his dirty look. "After all, he helped paint you with neon green flames to begin with. Oh, first.." She turned to me. "Did you get pictures?" I nodded, and her grin grew. "Ok then, while she's being super scanned, we'll repaint you."

"Gee. Thanks for the rescue." Looking over at Sunstreaker, I raised an eyebrow. "And you're not gonna be much help either, are you?"

He eyed me a long intense moment, his gaze thoughtful, before he sneered. "Your health_ is_ more important." There was no disguising the mocking in his voice. With that, he turned and waltzed off.

_Jeez, sure has hell doesn't feel like it. It might have been nice, if he didn't sound so damn sarcastic._ "You just talked yourself out of a wash and wax, mister." I grumbled, watching as he stopped cold, but didn't turn. Looking up at Ratchet, I sighed. I knew I didn't really have much of a choice, and really just wanted to get it over with. "Let's go." He didn't need to be told twice, and turned, leaving the main hangar behind him.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Once I sat down, taking it all in, it was definitely overwhelming. I felt like I was trying to swim across the ocean with only a noodle to help keep me afloat. There were times when I had no trouble keeping afloat and actually enjoying myself, feeling refreshed and energized. Then there were times when I felt like I was drowning, the water closing in over my head, and the noodle almost slipping out of reach._

_I felt overwhelmed. I was on a base, didn't know if I had permission to leave. Even if I did, my family wasn't mine, how did I deal with that? Rika it was easy with, because she was still Rika. Still the same girl I became friends with. What if my family was totally different? Even if they weren't, I couldn't see or talk to them anymore, not when it would put them in danger._

_Everytime I saw the Autobots, I felt relieved that I wasn't imaginating them, that I wasn't insane. Then there were times I wondered if I was doing right around them. Was it a bad idea to do that to Prime? What if it was too soon? My main saving grace was that Ironhide hadn't woken up, I really didn't need to deal with him too. At least on the upside, fanfictions seemed right about making him a kind and gentle, forgiving bot._

_And on the upside for him, he'd be repainted, washed and waxed before the day was out._

_Then another thing took over my mind. Gone was my anxiety with dealing with alien robots, knowing I'd be in danger, and God-only-knew-what was wrong with me. In it's place was Sunstreaker._

_How would I get him to accept me? Was it possible to get him to accept me? Or should I just do us both a favor, remain on base, and avoid him like a plague until Sideswipe arrived?_

_Now what?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : July 31, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	18. Jazz

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I know the whole vision with dead Jazz thing's been done before, but like I've stated before. Jazz will always come back in my stories, or be alive in the first place.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Remind me to tell Ratchet the list of differences between Cybertronians and humans. Uncomfortable? A 'little discomfort'? Oh hell no, this was so much more. The moment he tried to scan me, I felt like he was burning me alive. I could feel my body convulsing, hear screaming, but I couldn't make sense of it. Even as he stood over me, hands reaching for me, I found everything changing._

_Was it all a dream? A vision? Or something brought on by the radiation?_

_I was on a rocky cliff, looking out over rocks and sand. The area was familiar and not, and the sky was a dusky orange. I felt like I needed to know this place, but I couldn't place it. All I knew were mixed feelings of dread, confusion, and an odd sense of comfort. It wasn't until I realized I wasn't alone, that I snapped out of my daze, and then only to realize that more than just the scene before me had changed._

_What was happening to me?_

_What did they do to me?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

Everything was _so_ familiar. In an odd, barren kind of way, it seemed beautiful. The sun reflected off the rocky mountains and ledges, turning them into golden, dusky shades of orange and red. Shadows flitted back and forth, almost like they moved, or maybe danced. I felt like I was entranced by them, watching them slither and slide, before one would disappear or move to join with another.

A nice, cool, refreshing breeze blew by then, smelling oddly metallic and dry, but soothing my burning skin where the sun hit it. I relaxed, standing near a large ledge. It was then I heard an odd sound. It was an engine, I think, and it sounded like it was going back and forth. Pushed forward by the sound, I paused, hearing something metallic clink at my feet. I looked down then, and froze, seeing metallic feet plating instead of bare feet or even boots.

Shocked and confused, I followed the metal up, seeing twin thin metallic legs. Then a metallic torso covered in the same armored plates over the stomach and chest. It was slender, curvy, and completely unmistakeable. The further I looked up, the more I began to realize I wasn't human, but a Cybertronian instead. There were two areas that looked like... Well, I couldn't explain it. There was a covered section of my chest, and I could feel my heart behind the runic engraved cover. Then there was a lower one, larger, centered right over my stomach. My body wasn't brightly colored, or heavily armored, like most Autobots, and looked almost like a metallic skeletal structure.

In fact, it reminded me sharply of the Autobots as they looked when they first arrived on Earth, before they got their alternate forms. When they were, as I liked to call them, the Nekkie bots. _Protoform?_ I shivered a little, folding my arms over myself as I tried to understand what I was seeing, feeling.

"What...?"

Even my voice didn't sound like me. It was smoother, deeper almost strangely...I don't know, but with a metallic ring to it that threw me more than the voice change itself. A closer inspection showed I had metallic hands, too, and when I felt around, thick metallic links that fell to past my shoulders and moved stiffy, but oddly almost like hair.

"What is...happening to me...?"

I looked at my hands, the tapered, long slender metallic fingers, shining burnt orange in the sunset. I spent a while admiring the odd look, the odd feeling as I touched my hands together, and trailed them over my arms, feeling the sharp, warm contours and edges. Then the sound of the engine caught my attention once again, and I looked up. Moving forward, I cringed at my feet as they clinked along the rocks, until I got to the edge. Looking down over it, I felt my eyes widen.

"Oh my Primus!"

A small silver Pontiac Solstice was doing huge laps out on the sand, but at my voice, it skidded sideways, kicking up a wave of dust, before coming to a stop. The engine growled quietly as the car slowly started forward. It moved, almost hesitantly, then stopped. Quickly, in an almost graceful twist of gears, it rose up until the edge of the cliff was level with it's chest. Big blue optics shone down at me.

"Well, hey dere lil lady. Thought I was all alone 'ere. Ya wouldn't happen ta be able ta tell a mech where 'e might be." Scratching at his head, he looked around, confused. "Las' thin' I rememba is fightin' Megsy. Den poof! I'm here."

"Um, I dunno." Shaking my head, I frowned. "I mean...you're supposed to be dead, err...offline. Megatron ripped you in half." The memory made me cringe.

"Oh?" He looked at me in surprise, and it only just hit me that I could _see_ his eyes. His visor was up and out of the way. I wasn't sure how to take the fact he didn't look all that shocked, then again, there was a slightly strangled tone about his voice. "An' why're ya here, lil lady? Ya lost yer life in da battle?"

"Nah-_No_." _Dammit! He's got me doing it now!_ It seemed he knew it, too, because he smirked at my dirty look. "I'm human." Pausing, I frowned. "Or I was. I was completely human when Ratchet insisted on super scanning me. Then I was in pain, then I came here." Suddenly, I felt my heart sink. "Sweet Jesus, did that mother-fragger _kill_ me? Oh God, if he did, I'm _so_ finding a way back to kick aft!"

There was a deep chuckle, and Jazz leaned in closer. "I like ya. Ya got spark, femme. So whats yer designation?"

"Bella. And you're Jazz, the Autobot Saboteur."

A single optic ridge rose almost elegantly. "Ya heard of meh, right?"

"In a sense, yeah. It's a long story." Sighing, I sat down awkwardly, feeling the way my legs almost seemed to resist the movement. I started explaining everything to him, answering the questions I knew he'd have. Vaguely I had the thought I should just make a video documentary, so that every time someone new came along, I could whip out the disc and play it, instead of actually having to verbally recount it every time. By the time I was done, Jazz had his claws folded on the edge of the cliff before me, and was leaning on them, looking highly entertained, as well as shocked.

"Man, ya eva consider makin' a movie?"

I snorted and laughed, shaking my head. "I take it you missed the part where it _was_ a movie, where I came from? Although, that's probably a damn good way to get people to like the Autobots, before having a huge coming out party." I continued to laugh as I imagined it. "Optimus would have people climbing all over him, and practically mauling him. Sunstreaker might _just_ kill people for scratching up his paint...after tracking down and severely maiming the people daring to steal parts of him like his bumper and wheels."

Jazz laughed heartily and nodded. "Sounds like 'im. Didn't know ol' Sunny was even on Earth."

"That makes two of us."

"Ironhide might jus' start shootin' any organic who comes within fifty feet of 'im."

I nodded. "And Ratchet will become more crotchety than ever. Bumblebee would probably love the attention, but it'd kinda kill the whole 'Robots in Disguise' thing, and I doubt Sam and Mikeala would like the attention. Especially Mikeala." I thought about all the rumors about Megan Fox, and just how many people loved her looks over anything else. "Not to mention, there would _actually_ be Decepticon fans too, y'know."

"Really?" He looked surprised.

I nodded again, grimacing. "We'd probably even have people trying to get Megsy-" I liked that name. It was...weird and stupid...just like him. The snort to muffle my laughter was actually painful this time around. "-and Optimus together." Jazz looked confused, so I explained. "Romantically? Like...sparkmating?"

He choked and nearly stumbled back. "Yer kiddin'!"

"Nope." I popped the 'p' in there, and smirked. "You shoulda _seen_ the pairings fans wrote about. Bumblebee and Sam as sparkmates. Optimus and Sam. Optimus and Ironhide. _You_ and Prowl!" I watched as he shook his head, looking for all the world like he was about to pull a Prowl and glitch, but he seemed to recover. But I decided I'd teased him enough, he actually _looked_ like he was going to lose his energon. Sighing, I sobered. "Did you know that there are millions of humans out there that hated the fact you died? They think it was a big mistake." It was surprisingly easy to talk to him. Something about just how he was. When you sat down and got going, he was just so open and accepting, it was easy to forget yourself. It made the fact he was dead so much more difficult to accept.

He vented and leaned forward again. "Ya mean I'm really offline? Slag! And der's still so much ta do! I...thought I got transported somewhere, or bot-napped, or...somethin'. It's...hard ta accept." He finally sat back, as if the words were finally processing right. "Tell meh Prime and da othas won da battle!" I nodded, and he sagged a little. "I guess...dey don't need...meh anymore. It's just... I'm really offline."

"Tell me about it. Pretty much everything about all this has been nearly impossible to accept. I love being around the Autobots, but I feel like I should be treading carefully. Ironhide keeps glaring at me like I'm about to pull a rocket launcher out of my ass and aim for Prime. Prime seems ok, but he's been really busy. Sunny, my Prime-appointed guardian, loathes my guts. Then again, I'm human, so he _literally_ loathes my _guts_, and my oily skin, and my fragile nature, and my short life..." Jazz began to chuckle again. "Ratchet's only paying attention to me because I apparently have Allspark radiation and energon in my system. Bumblebee's not even on base, because he's watching over Sam and his family, and you... Well, you can't really watch over anyone when you're lying unmoving in Ratchet's med bay."

I'd seen that, too. The body was fixed, probably Ratchet's immediate work once he'd gotten the badly injured bots and humans looked after. Jazz's body looked like it had been welded back together, but it also looked like there was still work to do.

Jazz had sobered, and was frowning at me. "Ya say ya got Allspark radiation in ya?" I nodded, and he leaned even more forward. "I saw Sam earlier. Well, 'e _looked_ like Sam, but I knew 'e wasn't. 'e had red optics an' not organic eyes."

The image flashed across my mind, and I stiffened. "I saw him too! I don't...remember what he wanted...but he touched me." I placed a hand over my chest, just to the side of the chamber where my heart was. Where my heart would have been as a human. Wow, it was awkward seeing myself as a metallic being. Funny how I didn't give it much thought, though. "He said he was giving me a chance to make a difference."

He nodded. "Me, too." He held out a claw, and I watched as something glittered faintly in the seemingly endless sunset. "'e gave me dis an' asked me ta give it to ya. A femme who was one of us but not. A femme 'e'd met b'fore. Said ya'd have a good use fer it?" Cocking his head to the side, he lowered his hand towards me, and let the item fall.

I caught it as it fell, and stared wordlessly at a shard of the Allspark. It wasn't mine from my necklace, the shape and size was wrong, not to mention, this glittered like a sliver of the moon. It was silver, sparkling, with clear runic symbols all over it, nothing like the cube I'd seen, or even the shards. It was warm, tingling in my hands, and I looked up at Jazz. "Just what am I supposed to do with this?" My fingers trailed over the edges of it, feeling the sharp, jagged broken edge, and the indents of every rune on it.

He shrugged silently, watching me curiously.

I stared down at it. "I don't even know what it's capable of."

"It's a shard o' da Allspark."

His answer was stated like it should answer all of my questions, but it didn't. Just what entirely _was_ a single shard of the Allspark capable of? Not bringing back their world. Not all on it's own, anyways, but paired with at least one other? Would that be enough? No, it couldn't. It could bring things to life though, _that_ I knew. One was used on Megatron, and another on Jetfire.

Could I use this one to bring an Autobot back? Which one? Jazz was definitely a candidate. I wanted him to come back more than anything, but what if I was meant to use it on someone else? What if the Primes trusted me and I used it wrong? What about Optimus? What if he _did_ die? This shard could be used to ressurect him and save Sam from having to go through hell.

But hadn't the Primes said it might actually _be_ his _destiny_? Who was I to mess with destiny? Well, more than I already have, that is.

My eyes landed on Jazz, who didn't look the least bit put out that I was taking so long. By now, the sunset had finally ended, and the stars glittered overhead. It was the light of the full moon that highlighted his face that helped me make my decision.

He died by Megatron's hand. It was only fair he come back and help us stop him. Or rather...Starscream and his grunts. Besides, if I could keep Prime from _dying_ to begin with, there'd be no need to ressurect him. And even if there was, maybe it was just Sam's fate to go through all that. He became a true hero with that. He accepted the Autobots as part of his life, he told Mikeala he _loved_ her, and she told him the same. Maybe it needed to happen.

Right here and now, there was only one dead Autobot I knew about on Earth.

Standing, I stepped forward. "I...made my decision, but I'm not sure how to impliment it." I looked up at Jazz, before looking down at his claws. Reaching out, I placed the shard on one of them. _Please bring him back. If this is more than just a dream, let this work, and bring Jazz back to the land of the living, please._ It hit me, as I looked down at my hand over the shard, that it was glowing. The shard, that is. _Please, work._

"I...feel all tingly."

I laughed a little, pulling back. The shard glowed, lying on Jazz's claw, and the glow spread up his arms slowly. "Maybe that's how it's supposed to work. I'm not sure if it will." I shot him a pleading look. "I hope it will either bring you peace, or bring you back to the others. We all need you there, Jazz. We're outnumbered, and we're almost desperately low on good humor and relaxed, easy going Autobots." I smiled, though my eyes burned.

He smiled at me. "Aww, dat's sweet."

"And it's true. I hope you'll come back to us."

I watched as the glow spread up to his shoulder, and across his chest. There was a flash of light from the center of his chest, and he jerked, looking down. A light flashed from between his chest plates, and he moved back. His movements didn't knock the shard from his body, however, it seemed stuck to his claw as he stepped away from the edge, the glow travelling through his body.

"Ow! Hey! Dat hurts!" He suddenly doubled over, and I felt my eyes widen as I realized he'd started bleeding energon from the area where Megatron ripped him apart. He gazed at me, pained. "Is it s'posta hurt?"

"I...I dunno! Ratchet was repairing your body." I gasped then, feeling pain enter my being. "But I don't know how far he got!" _Oh God, what if he wasn't repaired enough? What if I was supposed to wait?_ "Jazz..."

"It hurts..." He groaned, curling up even tighter, and his body began to glow brightly, then dim. It ebbed and flowed like a heartbeat, and he groaned, gasping, clutching at his midsection. "Primus, make de pain stop!" Just as quicky as the shout echoed around me, there was a loud pop, and he was gone.

But I didn't have time to really think about it as I suddenly found myself falling with a cry.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_This I remembered clearly, as I awoke. Being Cybertronian, talking to Jazz, the shard... But when I came to, Ratchet was leaning over me, muttering in clicks and whirls. It was a while before I got him to clear it up, and suddenly, at least part of the dream made sense._

_As it turns out, the reason I reacted so badly wasn't just the scan. Apparently, the radiation had decided to finally take a turn. It wasn't just sitting in my body; it had turned my entire skeletal structure into Cybertronian makeup. I was more or less now in possession of a protoform, and it was spreading. Ratchet couldn't stop it. He didn't even know where to begin. All he could tell me was that the change may or may not kill me, and to expect at least one more attack like I'd had. Yeah, it was a scary thought._

_I was forbidden to leave the base, and was to spend my nights in the med bay._

_...Yay..._

_But when I finally got past the shock of realizing just what this 'chance to make a change' was, I turned to the back corner of the room, where Jazz's body lay. I wasn't sure if I should have expected him to be in pain, or sitting up and smiling at me, or what. Seeing him there, just as lifeless as before, I couldn't take it. I admit, I actually began to beg. _

_And trust me, I don't like to 'beg'._

_I begged Ratchet to look at him, repair his body, or at the very least _scan_ him. It took some pleading and nearly demanding before the bot agreed, and imagine our shock when Ratchet scanned him, to find his spark pulsing weakly but stably. _

_It worked._

_Jazz was alive._

_And I had a feeling I was once again about to be subject to another interrogation._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : Aug 1, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	19. Maggie

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Tests, tests and more tests. _

_Would it kill Ratchet to leave me the frag alone, for a little while? He knows Jazz has a spark-pulse, as he called it, and he works all his spare time fixing whatever he can. Apparently, Jazz is in stasis lock, his injuries still too severe to online fully, but the upside of that is, his pain sensors were deactivated with the lockdown._

_But whenever he wasn't messing over Jazz's body, he was fussing over me. Scanning, scanning, and more scanning. I even tried rationalizing it probably wasn't best, considering the issue with his super scan, but he waved it off, blaming it _fully_ on me._

_Yeah, he just signed his death certificate with that one. I now know who my next target will be. Well, maybe not my _next_ target, but I was definitely planning a super prank for him._

_After all, if I'm to suffer, why must I be the only one?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

"Out! Now!"

Sure, the order was what I was waiting for, but I was so shocked by it's appearance, I couldn't help but sit and stare. "But I thought-" _Shut up! Get going while the gettin's good, girl!_ Standing up, I waited until he not so gracefully hoisted me to the floor, before smiling. "Whatever you say, doc-bot, but you'd better do a good job on Jazz, you hear!" My smile faded, and I sighed. "He fought with all he had against Megatron."

Ratchet's glare softened ever so slightly, before he nodded. "I will work much faster without your constant orders and questions. Sunstreaker has been updated to your health status, and his presence has already been requested to see you around the base."

"What?" There went the small moment of nostalgia. _See me around the base?_ It sounded more like Sunstreaker was my babysitter than a bodyguard. "Wait, why did you tell him anything?" Not that I really minded all _that_ much. I would get to follow around a giant, mouthy Ferrari. Still, it would have been nice to have _some_ freedom!

"Because your health is still unstable. Also, I would suggest you try to keep up your eating. Regardless of if you feel hunger or not, your body still requires it's strength to transform." There was a small sigh, and Ratchet paused in what he was doing, to turn and kneel down by my side. "I do apologize, but there is nothing I can do to stop this from happening. There are a variety of chemicals and radiations that would, in combination, treat your own radiation and poisoning, but they would also kill you in the process."

I shook my head, swallowing heavily. This was gonna happen, I could feel it. Literally. The heat in my body felt worse than ever, until I felt like I could sweat in a igloo. "They said I might regret their gift." _Or something_.

"The Primes?" He cocked his head to the side, and I nodded. "They have visited you quite often when you are offline, do you know of any possible reason why that might be?"

I frowned. "No. The first time is when I think they _did_ this to me." I wasn't sure how to feel about it. I was...changing. Losing my humanity. It was one thing to accept the radiation as it moved through my body, I didn't _feel_ particularly sick, and I wasn't loosing my hair or anything. It was something else to learn I now possessed a protoform instead lf a bone skeleton. I was losing my humanity. What if I couldn't deal with this?

Shaking my head, again, I let out a rough sigh. "It's...necessary, I think." It was also easier to _say_ the words. Seriously, who was I trying to convince? How was my being like them _necessary_ to stopping death? Would I be fighting at their side? Would it be up to me to stop them from dying, in person?

"For what purpose?"

"That, I don't know. I guess...the same purpose as giving me a shard of the Allspark, and trusting it's use to me." I looked over to where one of Jazz's claws dangled from the berth, and bit my lip to fight the urge to reach up and place it at his side. Not that I could, considering, despite my protoform I was still _human._ "They wanted me to choose what I used it for, and I chose to use it to revive Jazz. I didn't even think that...maybe you weren't ready, or he wasn't."

"You followed your spark?"

I was about to tell him I didn't have a _spark_, but clamped my mouth shut, nodding instead. After all, I might not have had one _now_, not by their standards, but I would soon, if my transformation kept up at this rate.

"And your spark told you to chose Jazz? What about the other deaths you spoke of, to Optimus? _His_? Sam's?" There was no accusation, only regular questions. Simple inquiry.

"I don't know!" Stomping my foot on the ground, I shook my head so hard, I could feel my hair whipping across my face. "Why do you keep asking me these questions! I followed my heart! I did what felt right at the time! Optimus is _alive now_! Sam is _alive now_! Jazz was _dead_!" The frustration had me standing rigidly, glaring at Ratchet as he simply stared back, as though his annoyance was all but forgotten.

"Then I do not see why you should feel bad about the decision you made."

Did I feel bad? I know I felt guilty. I'm sure the Primes would have given me the time to stop and ask Ratchet how bad it was with Jazz. Why didn't I wait?

There was a sound of a door opening, and Ratchet straightened, even as I looked over my shoulder. Sunstreaker, glare and all, stomped into the room with his usual haughty air. "You rang?"

My lips trembled, and I turned away. The last thing I need was a Lurch impression, but damn if he didn't remind me of him! Deep voice, drawn out 'rannng' and all. All he needed was a tuxedo!

And yes, that was the point I realized I was thinking far too much.

"Hey Sunstreaker, feel like pulling some pranks?" I didn't have to see his face to know Ratchet was glowering, but the way Sunstreaker immediately straightened, his optics brightening, I knew I had his attention. "I bet you haven't had a chance to look at the worldwide web and learn all the Earth pranks out there." I smirked as his optics lowered to me.

"You strike me as more the sincere type." He sneered down. "Always serious, or mouthing off to someone."

"Gee, I learned from the best!" I couldn't help but grin as Ratchet choked behind me. "Besides, that's two more things we have in common." I walked forward, intent on taking Ratchet up on his offer to get out of the med bay, before I thought anymore and gave myself a hemmorage or something. "Are you coming or not?" I hesitated, pausing at his side, before grinning. My back was to the mech, so I quickly reached out and patted his shiny armor just above his ankles, before nearly running out the open door.

And no, I don't think anyone on the island missed the disgusted growl and snarl cross that came roaring out of the med bay after me.

I ended up twisting and turning down smaller, human-sized halls for several long moments before it really hit me that Autobots couldn't follow me. Not that Sunstreaker was belly aching about it. Not that he _could_, being that he wasn't exactly on my trail. For a second, I almost considered going back and looking for him.

_What does it matter? Where ever I go, there's gonna be _someone_ who can call Ratchet if I suddenly keel over._ The idea had my eyes narrowing. _I'm basically a prisoner right now._ A shiver stole through me, and I leaned against the wall, ignoring the odd looks soldiers were giving me as they passed. _This is exactly what I didn't want!_

"Tough day?"

The voice had me startling, and I looked up sharply. The accent threw me off more than anything, but seeing the corresponding blonde hair and blue eyes, I offered a bit of a smile to the girl who was clearly younger than me by at least a year, if not two. "You have no idea." I was about to go ahead and greet her by name, when Will's more wild-eyed look ran through my mind. Instead, I figured I'd take it easy on the poor girl. "You must be Maggie Madsen. I heard something about an Australian girl being involved..." I trailed off and hesitated. "Um, unless you're not Australian."

Laughing slightly, she shook her head. "No, I am." Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly, but her smile didn't fade. "And I heard all about the girl from the alternate reality who knows all about us." One eyebrow rose almost elegantly. "You wouldn't happen to be she?"

With a sigh, I nodded. "Yep. I'm she." There was an expectant look on her face, and I shook my head. "A lot of people don't like the knowledge I have. It...freaks them out, to be blunt. Just thought I'd save you the weird, awkward moments. And no, before you ask, I don't know a whole lot about the humans. Only that you're Maggie, the girl with the...well, it _sounds_ Australian to me, but who knows? You have an accent, you work in the, uh... Well, I like to call it the 'communications' department, working with complex computer codes and stuff?"

She nodded, her smile growing ever so slightly. "Yes, that's me."

"And I know about Glenn, a friend of yours who helped you crack the encrypted code around Project Ice Man, subsequently getting you involved with that psychotic little 'Con, Frenzy."

"It had a name?" Now her smile faded, and she grimaced a little. "That thing was _crazy_!"

"Tell me about it. I kept waiting for his legs to fall off from his crazy moving around. He gave 'peepee' dance a whole new meaning." She coughed, covering a laugh, and I rolled my eyes for emphasis. "His name's Frenzy, but a lot of people from my, uh..." I guess one word was as good as the next. "Universe, tended to believe he was more a drone than anything. A part of a larger Decepticon by the name of Soundwave. Or he might have been sentient, no one's sure."

She nodded, snapping her fingers as if she was reminded of something. "Oh! That's right! I was asked to work with the tech division about setting up security lines, encryping communications lines, and helping adapt human satelites from the base in order for the Autobots to be able to tap into them to scan for Soundwave." It was her turn to grimace. "I've got about one tenth of all that done, but I just can't _work_ anymore."

I could understand, too. She had little cuts and bruises peeking out from under her sleeves and miniskirt, as well as a couple on her face and neck, undoubtedly from when they had Frenzy-issues. If she was being run as ragged as Will looked, I was amazed none of them had collapsed already. Sure, I could understand the need for speed, but if people died trying to get their jobs done, that wouldn't help either.

I made a mental note to talk to Ratchet about mandatory holidays or something. After all, Soundwave didn't arrive for over a year. Well...as far as I knew, anyways. He'd have to back me up for the sake of their health.

As it was, I took in Maggie's ragged appearance. It was late. I got that much from a single glance out a window as I passed by it on my walk, but the sun was still high in the sky. She still probably had a lot of work ahead of her, and could use a little break. Smiling a little, I shrugged. "Wanna have some fun?"

She blinked, obviously startled, before letting that single eyebrow raise again. "What type of fun?"

"Not the kind that will end up with you in prison for the rest of your life, I assure you. I was just hoping to play a little prank."

She scrunched up her nose. "I heard all about the Prime thing. Neon green? Seriously?" She shook her head. "He probably resembled some weird Christmas tree, more than anything."

My mind immediately went to all the possibilities. Hanging ornaments off Prime in various places. Maybe even draping him in tinsel, with wreaths on his fingers. I snorted, busting up into giggles, as I imagined him trying to look regal with all that, neon green and white paint included.

_A fragging Cybertronian Christmas Pimp!_ The idea had me laughing so hard, I struggled to verbalize my random thought, and Maggie's eyes got so wide, I was surprised they didn't fall out. Oh Primus! If only I could draw, or actually get _away_ with a prank like that! That'd be one for the photo album!

It took us a long moment to sober, and then she sighed. "Although, I gotta tell ya... That wasn't exactly funny." She made a face. "Odd. Bold, but not really funny."

I sighed, moving off the wall. "Tell me about it. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Honestly? I just... I don't know what will really piss them off. I mean I know them, from what I've read and seen, but I don't really _know_ them. Not personally. I'm going by rumors, with very little hard fact to back them up." Shrugging, I straightened and looked up and down the hall. I wasn't looking for anything in particular, I was just looking around.

"Acting out?" She spoke like she knew what I was going through. After a moment of thought, I nodded. After all, it was pretty damn close to the truth. In a sense, I was showing them I wasn't going to sit back and be a quiet little lamb. "Well then, I'm sure we can find _something_ to do. You probably didn't hear Glenn complaining up and down the halls about their food choices here." Her accent seemed to thicken with her excitement and her eyes flashed darkly.

"What mystery meat, runny scrambled eggs, oatmeal that's more sand then anything else, and enough Kraft Dinner to line the northern coastline?"

She giggled and laughed. "I was thinking more along the lines of the Kraft Dinner. Why not...mess around with Epps' office?" She made a face, and nearly growled. "He's been having way too much fun with all this."

I nodded, feeling my chest tighten as I struggled not to laugh. "Like when Will felt him up for his credit card?" I tilted my head to the side a little, remembering the scene, even as Maggie spluttered to a stop, looking horrified, confused and slightly intrigued. "Oh yeah. 'It's in my back pocket!', 'You have like a million back pockets!'. Meanwhile, he's patting the man's ass." I grinned as her cheeks darkened and her eyes widened. "Uh-huh. 'Left cheek! Left cheek! Left cheek!"

"Oh...my God." It was Maggie's turn to lean against the wall, and she brushed her hair out of her face as she seemed to think about it. "Really? What was going on, that Major Lennox had to feel up Sargeant Epps?" She looked like she _wanted_ to laugh, but the idea was just a _little_ too disturbing. Or maybe intriguing. She honestly looked like she just wasn't sure.

"Scorponok, a Decepticon, was attacking them in Egypt, and Lennox was trying to call for backup, but the operator wouldn't let him connect to the base without credit card info." I felt my grin widen as she gave me a 'Are you bloody serious?' look, before cracking up. "Oh trust me, the sense of humor in the movies was awesome at times. Simmons had a close-up thong shot." I grimaced and Maggie turned positively _green_.

_Oh, yeah. That's right. He was there with her, so she knows who I'm talking about._ "Yep. Then in the second movie, set about two years from now, there's a Decepticon who's gonna have giant brass balls. Literally." At her weird look, I nodded. "Soundwave pretty much rapes a satelite in order to hack into it. For an emotionless Decepticon, he sure seemed to be enjoying himself." I think we both shared a grimace. "Let's not get into Sam's impromptu makeout session with a Decepticon Pretender, uh..."

"A what, now?"

"A Decepticon with the ability to mask themselves as a human." I clarified, snickering as I remembered his reaction to finding out just _what_ Alice was. "And you shoulda _heard_ him scream! I've heard more manly sounds coming from little girls!"

We just stood there, staring at each other silently for the longest moment, before simultaneously cracking up. I didn't miss the confused looks several soldiers shot us as they passed us, probably wondering what we were on, but hell, it was a funny memory, and one I wished more than anything, that I could share.

"Oh, that sounds priceless."

"Tell me about it. Anyways..." I wasn't going to be one easily sidetracked when there was something I wanted. Looking at Maggie, I raised an eyebrow and smirked. "You said something about KD and a certain someone's office? I like the sound of it so far, tell me more!"

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Needless to say, pranks are the way to a man's bad side. _

_By the end of the day, we'd managed to get Will in on the action, and even Sunstreaker popped in and volunteered to help. As long as it didn't involve us talking. Or me touching him. Or _anyone_ touching him, really. Or his paint getting scratched or anything getting damaged._

_In the end, Will, Maggie and I each took a separate kitchen in various places across the base, and each cooked up two of the largest pots we could find of Kraft Dinner. Surprisingly, I don't think we even touched a portion of the base supply._

_Scary._

_And kinda sickening._

_Sunstreaker travelled back and forth across the base, taking each set of pots for us, and helping to carry them to the designated office. Then, we set things up and waited._

_Handily, if that's even a word, Sunstreaker's 'processor' had an instant still function on it, allowing him to take pictures and save them or send them everywhere, as well as a video option. He managed to record Epps as he sauntered to his office, opened the door, and walked inside._

_He even managed to sneak up to the door, peering around the corner -I guess his holographic form is more useful than I thought- and video taped it as Epps sat in his seat. _

_Even as I watched the video later. I couldn't help my jaw dropping as I picked up the almost real life sounds coming from my new phone, and I seriously _cringed_ at the sound of plastic stretching and tearing ominously. Then the screen was a wash of orange, and there was a yell._

_And to make it even better?_

_Sunstreaker followed Epps _all_ the way across the base, where he stormed into the main hangar, demanding to know who 'punked' him. He was covered head to toe with cheese and noodles, sending people into fits, and to add to the whole effect, people started spouting random puns._

_"Are you cheesed off for any particular reason?" _

_That...nearly killed me. I mean it! I think I nearly laughed up a lung at that!_

_Yeah, that most definitely made up for the earlier prank fail, but I'm going to have to watch my back for a while._

_-Bella._

_

* * *

_

**Written** : Aug 3, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	20. The Wash

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Ok, so the prank had more drawbacks than expected. So Epps didn't know it was Will, Maggie and I, though I think he had a hint of an idea on my part, if his suspicious glowers were anything to go by. I was just lucky Will and Maggie didn't say anything to his questioning._

_However, he _did_ know Sunstreaker was in on it, and I was shocked as hell when the bot didn't deny it _or_ tell him I was involved. That earned him a large pot full of cold, sticky KD all over him, and I cringed again, feeling almost physical pain at seeing the beautiful car -and yes, he was in Ferrari mode- covered in nasty cold noodles. Some were sticking to his hood, and others sliding into areas I didn't even want to _consider_!_

_Poor Sunny. He shuddered and shrieked, and then the car growled angrily. Made me wish I'd brought my own camera from the safety of my room, to watch as Epps' eyes widened with horrified realization, and he took off like a bat out of hell with one pissed off Cybertronian Ferrari chasing him down._

_It was funny. It was sad, yet so damn funny, my chest hurt for hours afterwards from the force of my laughter.._

_Then, of course, that damn bot decided to pull a fast one on me._

_-Bella._

_

* * *

_

"Clean me!" It wasn't a question, and it wasn't a requent. It was a demand.

For a moment, I just stared at the Ferrari, it's engine gunning angrily, even as noodles dripped off it. Seeing the slime trail behind it from the stuff, I could have laughed, if...once again, I wasn't so damn thrown by his order. I probably should have been jumping for the sky, but my head was starting to hurt. Like seriously. I felt like I had a migraine the side of Optimus himself!

I shook off the pain, glaring at the Ferrari. "Excuse me?" He didn't just order me around, did he? "I'm not the one who poured noodles on you, you know."

"I was assisting in your prank. Therefore, it's your problem. Clean me. I believe I've earned this 'wash and wax' you promised before." His distaste at the word 'earned' was more than expected.

I blinked, before his words really set in. "You're really serious." Of course it crossed my mind that I'd recalled that promise, too. Folding my arms over my chest, I felt my eyes narrow as I stared down at the car. I was sore, tired, and getting irritated. This was Sunstreaker, I should have known to expect this, but... I just didn't feel up to dealing with it right _now_.

Heh, so much for daydreams about riding around in a beautiful Ferrari with a gorgeous Corvette at it's side. "Yes, I think your alternate form is gorgeous, but no, that doesn't mean I'm gonna be your wash and wax slave! Since when do you think you can order me around?" I think I was really too insulted, to take in the offer he was giving me.

"I'm slimy. I'm smelly. I'm a slagging mess, and it's all because of _your_ prank."

"Hey! We did say it wasn't going to be easy." I took a step back, moving to the side a little, getting out of the way of a couple of soldiers trying to shimmy past the car taking up almost the entire hallway. They looked a little more put out by the noodly mess than by the formerly pretty car itself. "Besides, I didn't _order_ you to follow him, now did I? You gave yourself away there, buddy!"

There was silence a moment, before the engine gunned again. "I am not your..._buddy_." His tone was haughty, less indignant and more disbelieving.

"All the more reason I should turn around and walk away." The pain in my head was getting worse, and I raised a hand, rubbing at my temple. "I don't have the energy to deal with you right now, but you know what? As much as I knew you were an aft towards humans, you really are an _aft_ towards humans. You have arms and legs. Google 'car wash' and do it yourself!"

I was half tempted to walk off, but found myself rooted to the spot anyways. Was it really that bad that...as insulted as I was for the order, I was also sorely tempted, just for the chance to...well...pretty much be all over a newer model Ferrari? _Hmm... I never did look up the make or model._ Funny how that seemed like such a small thing now, no longer the least bit tempting.

"Slag it femme, I'd need to transform to do that, and I'd get this mess into my inner workings! Or is your mind too small to comprehend that?"

Growling quietly, I suddenly got an idea. _You wanna play like that? Fine, let's play._ I shrugged and turned. "Well, come along then. Let's get this farce over with. While I'm at it, I owe big bot a wash." And if I was being honest, a nice cool shower sounded relaxing.

And I did mean _cool_.

If he was surprised by my sudden change of mind, he didn't show it. The Ferrari followed close behind me, bumping into the back of my legs more than once. Any other day and it could have been almost cute. One time, I almost toppled over onto him, and I don't think I'd ever seen a car shimmy back so fast. At least he stopped bumping into me. Not that it was painful or anything, but it was definitely annoying.

Soon, I made it to the main hangar, and was pleasantly surprised to find Optimus in his truck form, the paint back to normal, though both colors seemed to be a deeper, richer color. I didn't mind. I liked it. Hopefully, the paint had dried by now. I think Rika vaguely mentioned it being a different brand. Working my way over, I paused in front of the truck.

"Uh...Optimus?" _Should I be whispering, or maybe...knock?_

There was a quiet rumble from the idling truck. "Yes, Isabella."

"Bella." The correction was almost automatic at this point, and didn't really phase me. "I was wondering if you have plans for the next, oh...well, I'd say the rest of the day?" Trying to time myself was more or less useless. I'd never washed a car before. All I know was it was likely to take hours. "Sunstreaker is ordering me to wash him."

The sound of the engine seemed to increase a moment, before the truck shifted with a sigh. "Sunstreaker, they are allies, not pets. We have no right to order them around." His tone was more resigned and tired than anything. Then there was a very brief pause. "Why are you covered with...noodles and...sauce?"

I could hear snickers across the base, and couldn't resist a tired smile. "The fallout of a good prank. And I didn't mean he was literally ordering me. I'm more than aware I can walk away at any time, but..." My smile grew as I shifted so my back was to the Ferrari, and I was facing the truck, winking at it, before wondering if he could even _see_ the wink from where I stood. "What do I have to lose? So...you feel up to a wash later?"

"I...have no plans." Was it me, or did the twenty-eight foot tall, giant alien robot, actually _sound_ hesitant. "Is it painful?"

Will had been wandering over when he must have heard that, and he stopped blinking. I faced him, and raised an eyebrow, feeling my lips tremble. "Well, not a good wash. A good wash should feel..." Judging by fanfictions and theory? "Really nice and relaxing." For Sunstreaker? Probably not so much. I was already planning as I looked to Will, and trust me, I was more than aware he was eyeing me warily back. He probably knew I was planning trouble, and was almost afraid of what I had in mind.

And it struck me that all I was doing was causing trouble.

Looking away, I began to rethink my plan. I'd originally thought about using a slow acting -if there was such a thing- paint stripper on Sunstreaker, as a 'wax'. That way, he'd slowly notice the way his paint seemed to fade, probably in patches. Or maybe steel wool scrubbers or something. I was a little too tired to deal with the fall out, however, so instead, I replanned.

"Hm... I suppose I can accomodate. If you have the time and energy, I would be interested in experiencing one of these 'washes'."

I nodded to Optimus, before turning to Will. "Got washing supplies?" He nodded, and I followed him out of the hangar. To my relief, Sunstreaker didn't follow us as we made our way to a nearby storage shed, and rifled around. "So Will..." I hesitated, frowning. "Or should I call you Major Lennox?"

He stood straight and handed me a bucket with brushes and rags in it. "Will's fine, unless you're secretly a soldier." Raising an eyebrow at me, he seemed to sigh a little. "Besides, with how much you apparently know-wait..." Eyes slowly narrowed. "Just how much _do_ you know? About me? Uh, the other humans involved with the Autobots?" There was a hint of hesitation in his voice, and I could imagine the thoughts going through his mind.

"Well, I know you're married and have a very young baby at home. Her age was rumored anywhere from a couple of months to maybe close to a year..." My mind turned to the image of Annabelle. She was such a little baby, but a lot bigger than I'd have expected from a newborn. "You all really love each other, and you'd do anything to protect your girls." I watched as his eyes went distant, a smile tugging at his lips. Seeing that look, something just seemed to burn within me, and I heard the next words slipping out of my mouth before I realized what I was saying. "And Ironhide is rumored to really take to Annabelle, loving and protecting her like she was his own." His eyes snapped back to the present, and I winced, realizing what I'd just let slip.

_Well shit!_

It was only a matter of probably a really small amount of time before Will reacted to everything I'd just said, but I was already contemplating every possible way out of that room, and away from his probable questions and demands. Surprisingly, right before my eyes, he seemed to blink, then just...go still.

"...Really?" His head tilted to the side a little. I wasn't sure if his tone was confusion, curiosity, fear or what, but it sounded more like a combation of just confusion and curiosity.

I was a bit startled by his reaction, or rather...lack of, but shook it off. "Well, yeah. Rumored, mind you, but I've heard stories so touching, it hardly seems like Ironhide, yet _just_ like him. The way he can hold her in his actual form, to the way he looks at her, and will face a hoarde of Decepticons to watch over her. It's really amazing." I was smiling as I described him. "He seems like a big muscle head, trigger happy bot, but fans of the show described him as secretly smart and thoughtful with a heart as big as he was."

"It's all rumor?"

I shrugged. "Well, as far as I know it is. But for all I know, they got the information from _somewhere_. There's really only one way to tell for sure, but _I_ personally think he's all that and more." Will nodded hesitantly, not really looking all that sure, and I shrugged again, before raising an eyebrow. "So, does the bucket come with a hose or anything, or am I bathing the Autobots in the ocean?"

That got him, and Will chuckled a little, shaking his head. "There's a hose." He gestured for me to follow him, and we wandered out and around the shed to a hose curled up, attached to a faucet tap. "There ya go. Um, listen, what about...my family? I mean, will they be safe at home?" Now I could see the fear in his eyes, and the way he kept glancing around warily.

"With you anywhere near them? I'm pretty sure not even a dozen massive Decepticons could work their way past you." I smirked as he stared at me dumbly for a moment, before smiling a little in response. "And Ironhide too?"

His smile faded then. "But we're not _near_ them. We're too far. If anything happens-"

"As far as I know, nothing did. I can't say for sure... The second movie didn't really go into a lot of what happened in the two years after Mission City. Especially not with the humans. I mean, all I really know is Sam and Mikeala are exclusive, or...will be soon. They fall in love. Bumblebee stays with them. You become a part of NEST-" The cringe was hard to fight, as his look faded to confusion. I had to remember they haven't really thought all that out yet. It's too soon. NEST doesn't technically exist at the moment, let alone have a name. "-with Epps, working personally with the Autobots in locating and eradicating every Decepticon threat you find. I don't know what happens in your personal life, but as far as I _think_... I think your family stays safe." Sighing, I leaned against the shed. "I'm sorry I can't be any more certain than that. I'm fairly confident everyone turns out ok. It's what's coming in two years we _really_ need to worry about."

"Why?" He copied me, frowning. "I heard something about another possible battle, and people getting hurt, but no real details just yet."

"Not just hurt. There's a possibility of Optimus being killed by Decepticons while protecting Sam, and Sam... Well, he... Uh..." Trailed off, noticing the Ferrari right away as it almost crept out of the hangar before us, before seeming to head defiantly towards us without even pausing at the snickers and shocked laughter. He was followed by Optimus, and I bit my lip. "To be honest, I'm not sure if telling anyone is a good idea. I mean, I told Optimus, he's a direct party, but if..." I almost sagged with a huge sigh, curling up as the vehicles approached. "I'm starting to worry about making things worse."

Will moved until he was crouching in front of me, looking into my eyes. "If it's something I need to know-"

"I don't know, that's just it." My head was throbbing with my heart. "Their ancient Gods, the Primes, spoke to Sam after Optimus died. The poor boy had to go through hell to help bring Optimus back and save our world...again. Their Gods told him it was his destiny to save Optimus." I looked to Will, meeting his eyes. I never really realized just how _blue_ his eyes were. Then it hit me, so were Mikeala's, Sarah's, Maggies... Sam's were rumored to be green, and obviously Epps' were dark. Hell, even Secretary Keller's eyes were blue.

And random thought time was officially over.

"Just...realize that you might just see things you don't want to, that will haunt you, but it...might be necessary." The tension in my body forced me to stand to alleviate it, and I brushed myself off, before grabbing the hose and turning back to him. "All you really need to know is that as far as the second movie goes, if we're really careful, there will be very few casualties." I thought about the soldiers under his command and paused. "As far as I know." _It's the third movie you need to watch out for._

He raised an eyebrow, turning to wave at the Autobots, before stepping back. "That's _real_ reassuring." He spouted sarcastically, before waving at me and backing away. "Anyways, enjoy. I have a job to get back to."

"Gee thanks." Rolling my eyes, I waved back, turning to the Autobots. The first thing I noticed were the large clumps of slimy noodles all over Sunstreaker, and I groaned a little in disgust, my hands clenching at the thought of having to touch them. I ran my eyes up over his windshield, and was inspired at the way his windshield wipers swung back, knocking noodles off the glass, before sliding back down.

I turned to the bucket, and could have squealed happily at seeing the squeegee in there with everything else. The first thing I did was pick it up. Then I took a deep breath and turned. "Ok, time to get down to work."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Have you ever felt a car shudder at the touch of a squeegee? No, for one thing you've probably never had to take a squeegee to your car before. Not like this, anyways. Either way, every shudder sent me closer and closer into a fit of hysterical laughter. I couldn't get over the way Sunstreaker _squirmed_ at the touch of it, complaining more than once at the awkward squeaking sound. It seemed he was convinced I was removing his paint, or something._

_Hell, even Optimus seemed thrown by it. He seemed to decide to play a game of red light green light._

_Every time I glanced over, the truck was a few feet further back, but as I looked, it stopped moving. _That_ sent me into hysterics that nearly completely derailed my plans of washing both vehicles, and would most definitely remain with me for a long time._

_Red Light Green Light with a sentient semi. Who would've thought?_

_However, I kept up with my promise. Although Sunstreaker squealed like a little femme at the icy water I used with him, he didn't complain once at the idea of being washed. I think he even _purred_! I never in my wildest imagination could have come up with _that_ of all things. _

_He shrieked like a femme sparkling when I hit his undercarriage with the same icy water, but as I slipped the sponge into the seams along the windshield and doors, and into the wheel wells, he trembled and purred like a kitten. There were even times when I slipped my fingernails into the crevices to dig out bits of noodles that the sponge didn't reach, and Sunstreaker actually pushed into the touch, a strange, stuttering sound came from his engine._

_So imagine my amusement when I announced I was done and Sunstreaker growled in annoyance, only to drive out of the way, letting me turn my attention to Prime. I didn't miss the way he shook on his axels, as Prime wheeled in slowly, almost hesitantly. And I didn't miss the tiny arc of blue energy that danced over his hood, before he seemed to lower on his axels and vent heavily._

_Aft or not, it was really cool getting those purrs and small groans out of him. Knowing _I_, a squishy organic, could do that to such a haughty bot. It made me plan out more washes, just for the joy of finding out what other sounds I could make him make._

_Then I spent a few minutes trying my damnedest not to turn around and start banging my head on the wall of the building behind me, to knock away those rather...x-rated thoughts._

_For Optimus, I used warmer water, much to Sunstreaker's annoyance, and I could feel the way Optimus seemed to drop down on his axles, relaxing under my touch. Oddly enough, he actually asked me to avoid certain areas, stating they were very sensitive, and when I hit other areas, he didn't react the same way as Sunstreaker. In fact, he didn't react much at all. _

_It was awkward getting to his hood and roof, which required climbing, but luckily Maggie made another appearance from when Glenn came and dragged her off earlier. She offered to climb up onto the higher areas and scrub them down, and wow! She was good! She was almost like a monkey. She climbed with ease, she clung with ease, she cleaned with ease, before climbing back down._

_The only times she paused or hesitated, was when Prime actually asked her to leave a certain area be, or seemed to shudder a little._

_Optimus looked better than ever once he was washed, and seemed as reluctant to leave as Sunstreaker had been. Just like I thought, Autobot washes would likely turn out to be a big thing here. Especially once the humans got used to them._

_Crashing for the night, I was nearly in tears from my migraine. I got some tylenol from Maggie, not wanting to bother Ratchet, and then went back to my quarters, only for Ratchet to appear and drag me down to the med bay for the night. I could only hope I'd get a good night's sleep, but somehow, I seriously doubted that would be the case._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : Aug 4, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	21. Transformations

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_You know, I think it only just set in that I'm changing. I mean, I heard the words as they were spoken, but it never really sank in until now. Even as I struggled to ignore the ever increasing pain in my head, all I could think about was the fact...I was loosing myself. Or so it felt. I wouldn't be human anymore, soon. I...am honestly beyond not believing any of this, though if it all turned out to be some insane coma dream, I think I'd lose my mind. What I really had trouble believing was not only am I actually _here_, _with_ the Autobots, but I am actually _turning into one_._

_My hands _looked_ human. Five fingers, or rather, four fingers and a thumb for those sticklers out there. They were coated with skin, bent at every joint just like they should have been able to. My wrist didn't work any different. In fact, nothing in my body seemed to work any different...well, except my stomach. That's just yet another thing I need to adapt to. I've had no appetite since coming here. This must really be taking a toll._

_I keep expecting to lose my mind. To just...snap. Go insane. Looney._

_I'm in every girl's -and most men's- fantasy. I'm living with giant alien robots who turn into kickass cars. I'm part of a top secret military facility with _aliens_. My guardian is _the_ Sunstreaker, complete with snooty attitude and gorgeous alternate form. And to top it all off, I'm turning into one of them! Wait...did that mean I'd end up in some romance with one of them? I mean, soon I won't even be _able_ to mate with a human, let alone get romantically involved._

_And worst of all, there are only a few Autobots to chose from. Optimus was rumored to have Elita-One, her whereabouts and living status currently unknown. Ironhide -that hardass dumbaft- had Chromia, who as far as I know is alive and well and on her way to Earth. Bumblebee was a sweety, but would he even transfer over to a comparable age? I mean, he was what they'd call a 'teen' right? Millenia old or not, he was still so very young in their eyes. Not to mention, what about fanfictions with Arcee as his mate? Speculation of course, but still... That left... As far as I knew for the bots on Earth and the bots coming... Sunstreaker, Sideswipe, Jolt, The Chevy twins..._

_Ok, the last ones aren't really an option, as the shudders running through my body proove._

_Let's not even get into Ratchet..._

_Ok, seriously bad thoughts. Time to move on._

_What is _with_ this migraine?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

_Ow, ow, double ow, triple-ok, that's enough._ Sitting up, I inhaled sharply, my eyes clenched shut. The agony was frightening. I know I'd taken something for the pain, but it wasn't doing jack squat for my headache. If nothing, this had to be the worst migraine in history, but I was still wary about going to Ratchet about it.

Said bot was sitting curled up in his make shift medical bay, knees drawn to his chest, back pressed against the corner, and head drooping. His optics were dark, and almost all the sounds but for a quiet hum had left his body.

I winced again as another throb ran through my body, both out of pain and out of a combination of fear and guilt. Fear, because the absolute _last_ thing I needed was Ratchet throwing a hissy fit over a headache, and guilt because I'd have to wake him up in order to tell him about it.

I stared at him a long moment, and even through my pain, I couldn't help but question the last time he'd honestly recharged through the night. Flopping back down on the bed, I began to rub at my temples, trying _oh_ so hard to sooth away at least _some_ of the pain.

There was no way of telling what time it was right about now. My purse with my cell phone was all the way across the room, and apparently Ratchet didn't see fit to have any clocks in here. I suppose with internal clocks it made it sort of moot point, but still... Humans don't _have_ internal clocks.. Well, uh, ok, not the kind that tell time, anyways.

Shaking my head, I don't really know how long I was sitting there, thinking, but I'd had enough. As wary as I was about incurring Ratchet's wrath, I was in serious pain and needed to do _something_ about it.I sat up, looking around. It was dark out, the only thing I could make out in the small window; probably the middle of the night. Glancing back up at Ratchet, I grimaced, before sliding off my little military cot, and stumbling with a groan.

It seemed that was all that was needed.

Ratchet jerked with a surprisingly loud clank of metal on cement, and his optics lit brightly, quickly. Startled, I just sat on the ground before sliding into a laying position, blinking up at him. It didn't last long though, and I hissed sharply, rubbing at my temples again.

"Isabella, are you in pain?"

"No." I grunted and hissed. "I thought I'd sit on the floor with my cheek pressed to the filthy linoleum for the hell of it. It's surprisingly fun!" I growled a little at him, before whimpering and pressing the heel of one hand to my head.

He seemed to ignore my catty comment. I felt the tell tale tingle and frowned, clenching my teeth together against the pain. "Hm." The ground shook, and I heard him move. "Scans show the radiation is currently concentrated within your cerebral-"

"Head, Ratchet." I slid over on my side. Pressing my cheek to the cool floor, I closed my eyes, now digging my heels of my palms into my head. "It's...easier just to say 'head'. And yeah, I kinda noticed." I couldn't really tell if my voice was extra loud, or if that was just the migraine settling in. Either way, _ow_!

There was a hint of a groan, and it sounded annoyed. "It appears this may yet be another 'attack'."

"I sure as hell hope not. The last thing I want is to go back to that weird desert." And it was true, too. Every time I went there, something beyond funky happened to me. Most people might be happy with _that_ kind of attention, but not me. I just wanted to be left alone. Plus...Jazz had yet to be repaired enough to wake up. "I took pain meds, but it didn't work." _Way to state the obvious, dumbass._

"I don't suppose it would, now would it? Not with what's happening to your body. However, I don't feel comfortable giving you anything strong. I have no idea how it will effect your body." I braved a glance up, thankful it was still dark in the room. His bright blue optics were hovering over me now. "Why are you lying on the floor?"

"The floor's cool."

"Be that as it may, I don't see what is so interesting about it. That is rather unsanitary-"

"Tell me about it. Who knows who you've stepped on recently." I grinned and giggled, groaning in pain a little when he paused, actually _checking_ his foot pads, before shaking his head. "Not that kind of 'cool', Ratchet. It's pleasantly chilled." Then I frowned, before almost crawling to a new spot. "Or, it was." There was a flash in my peripheral and I once again glanced up, my mind more focused on the pain in my head, than the man before me. "Oh, hey mini-Ratchet."

He crouched, a frown on his holographic face. I wondered, briefly, if they came to Earth with holographic bodies? Or if that was something they figured out in seconds of arrival. They hadn't been here long, and I'd already seen Sunstreaker's, Optimus' and Ratchet's holographic forms. Forms none of them used at all in the movie, that I was aware of.

"You are in pain."

I couldn't tell if the statement was _just_ a statement, or a question, so I just remained quiet and nodded, whimpering as another powerful ache ran through my head. The tingle followed suit, and the whimper turned into an admittedly weak growl. Now I had an almost painful itchy feeling in my head, rather than just painful. I could have smacked Ratchet, if I didn't already know it'd hurt me worse than him.

"This is odd. It doesn't seem to be progressing."

_It feels like it's progressing to me._ I thought, rubbing at my temples, while rolling over to a new, cool patch on the floor. The pain seemed to have settled at a really intense state, and there was an almost unbearable pressure behind my eyes that had me furrowing my eyebrows almost instinctively.

"This does not sit well with me."

"Imagine how I feel!" The words were out before I'd had a chance to attempt to think them through, and I grimaced both in pain, and the venom behind them. "I'm sorry. It just...hurts. A lot. Is there anything you can do? I mean, I'll take the freakin' risk with pain meds. Seriously! I feel like the pain itself is gonna kill me!"

"Now you are just being over dramatic." However, I could hear him moving, and soon, I felt my arm being grabbed. "If this is what you really want-" He didn't even finish, before I felt a small, sharp prick in my arm. If it wasn't for the pain in my head, I might have recoiled. Needles weren't exactly my cup of tea, thank you very much. "You should feel some effect within moments."

No sooner did he speak the words, then I felt a rush of cool releif soar through me. It was a little embarrassing to admit, but I actually sighed in relief, sagging back into a boneless mess on the floor as the pain dulled incredibly. It didn't disappear completely, but I actually felt like I might just like through it all.

"Oh my _God_, thank you so much!" I didn't even try to move, feeling the numbness roll over my body with the lack of pain. I could have asked about the sudden feeling like I was just too damn tired to move, but I knew well enough that most incredibly strong pain killers also came with a sedative. I just lay there, perfectly content to remain sprawled out on the hard floor for the rest of the night.

However, there was a sigh, and I jolted a little, one eye popping open of it's own accord, as I felt something lightly prodding at my side. "Wha-?" I gazed up at the bright blue optics, watching as they seemed to dance back and forth before me. _Damn! He used the _really_ good shit!_ Hopefully it wasn't morphine though. The last thing I needed was to wake up as a giant alien robot with hives.

The fingers curled around me, slipping underneath me and picking me up. I'll probably laugh tomorrow about the sudden raggedy Anne feeling that ran through me as I hung limply from his hand, but for now I just ignored it as he lifted me up, depositing me back on the cot behind me once more.

I think I thanked him. I'm not sure. I don't really remember if I said anything or not, or if it was even intelligable. The room spun and swayed, and I watched Ratchet's optics shimmy in front of me for a moment, before just closing my eyes.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

He watched as the femme seemed to slip peacefully into unconsciousness. He'd given her the strongest Earth pain killers he dared, and was amazed it actually worked. Especially considering the cause of the headache was literally alien in nature, and not the normal causes that medication was made for.

He frowned, watching as she recharged seemingly peacefully. Her spark-rate had slowed to what humans deemed normal for during their recharge hours, and her breathing was deep and even. He could still see the way her eyebrows furrowed now and then, and he knew she was still in pain.

Venting, he made a mental report, before pinging it over the communications line to await Optimus' onlining so he could read it. Then he sat down. It was awkward to sit with his legs crossed, they really weren't built for that position, but he remained where he was, watching as she recharged and scanning her every thirty Earth minutes.

It took him a few hours to realize that the progress was slow going in her cerebral cortex. The radiation was spreading, slowly encompassing her entire skull radius, but it was moving. He could also tell that nanites seemed to be forming in her mind, those spreading rapidly, and very slowly and almost painstakingly, they were transforming her. First to change over his vigilant watch was her skull plating. It was already basically a shell of Cybertronian steel around her sensitive brain, but it seemed to transform even more. It began to thicken, forming retractable plates much as any Cybertronian would have, as well as typical sensor nodes.

Next was her brain itself. It was beyond even his processor capabilities to understand how she was living through all this, but he began a nearly continuous scan as segment after segment of her brain was being over run with nanites. There was no real transformation there, just yet. They just seemed to be working, but even as he 'watched', miniscule amounts of Cybertronian metals were appearing under or around them, on the brain itself.

More than once, he ended up on his feet, cursing every ancient Cybertronian Prime he knew, her 'heart' shuddering and skipping beats. It stopped a few times, calling for him to jump and quickly work to restart it. The last time, he nearly gave up when her heart refused to beat again, when his last attempt got it started. It had taken almost two minutes though, and he feared some kind of permanent damage from it. That would come later, however. Right now, she was still changing.

His spark was shaking with the strain of what he was facing. He was a strong bot, but he was an old bot, and this kind of strain was really wearing on him. Venting deeply, he shuttered his optics, listening to her heart beat unsteadily, and reading the constant scans as her mind setting worked overtime.

Then he realized that it was spreading quickly. What was taking several Earth hours to encompass her skull in it's entirety, was now moving much more quickly, working it's way down to her human heart. This is where he tensed. The brain was incredibly important yes, but it was the heart, like their Cybertronian sparks, that drove the human body.

He leaned over her, breathing deeply. He could see the sweat on her pale face, which was now screwed up in even more pain than before. Gritting his dental plates, he hissed a little. _**'Ratchet to Prime, we have a situation.'**_ The larger bot could always go back to recharge after, but this was important. Optimus needed to be made aware of it.

There was a moment of tense silence, Ratchet's optics scanning over her body again and again. It hit him then that, her skin had paled considerably. She was tanned, like Mikeala Banes, but as she changed, her skin seemed to lighten into a rather fair tone. Whether her skin tone was changing under strain and pain, or it was just a part of the transformation, he had no way of knowing. Her face was beaded with sweat, and his scans kept him informed as her heart changed.

The rest of her organs had only begun basic changing. The shells just beginning to form as Cybertronian version, or in the case of some of these organs, they began to shrink and shrivel. That progress was even slower than that of the radiation changing her skull plating, however. Ratchet was also more than aware as her blood, which had remained tainted with energon since her exposure, had begun to thicken, slowing it's progress through her veins.

His dentals creaked ominously with the pressure of his gritting, even as he got to work. He was about to comm Optimus again when the sluggish reply was finally sent.

_**'I received the file attachment. Her transformation has started?'**_ The tone was weary, and his medical side immediately stiffened, noting it.

He roughly shoved that aside however, as it _was_ him who woke the Prime up. _**'Her transformation is processing much more aggressively than I am comfortable with-Slag!'**_ Even as he spoke, her heart gave one last pump and stopped. He lurched forward, reaching out with his fingers transformed into pincers to grab the human defibrilator, when he paused cold. A fresh scan had come back, and he sat there, frozen solid, shock causing his systems to nearly stall.

Sure, he knew it would eventually happen, with her transforming, but he'd never expected it to just...be there. How had he missed it before? _Had_ he missed it, or was it somehow shielded through her changing?

_**'Ratchet?'**_

He stared down at the femme, repeatedly reading over his scans, optics wide with the shock he was feeling. _Impossible._ He scanned her again, carefully around her still heart, noting it was shrinking and seemed to be eating away at itself. _I'd have noticed. I've been scanning her carefully, I'd have noticed!_ Why was the energy centered in her cranium when the main change seemed to be happening within her chest cavity?

_**'Ratchet?'**_

He could have sagged in on himself as he fell back, suddenly understanding all too well how the femme felt when her pain was lessened. He stared down at her, no longer concerned, even as her heart slowly shrank down until it hit her new heart, curling around it and burning away into nothing, the rest of her organs seemingly unaffected, so far. _All along._ He shook his head. _**'I believe I have found her shard of the Allspark.'**_ His exrays showed the jagged shard, covered with a round shell emitting a purely Cybertronian energy signature.

He quickly collected his scans from his processor and filed them all into a data burst, sending it Optimus' way, before leaning down again. This time, his frown was of a different concern, and he opened a side panel on his own body, staring down at the clear, glowing blue-green tubes.

_It's necessary._ She already had a spark, so he had to _try_. The way her blood was now beginning to thin, the actual _blood_ slowly evaporating into thin air, the energon was not enough to make it through her system. There was no telling how she'd react to his energon, but he didn't have a choice.

Selecting a cable, he quickly worked to hook up an intravenus directly over her spark, and inserted a needle into one of the tiny ports in her spark, through her skin and muscle. She flinched ever so slightly, but otherwise remained still, however her spark pulse wildly and he stopped until he was certain it was safe to proceed.

He hook up the other end to his own system, feeding a very miniscule amount of energon directly into her spark, and the energy nearly jumped right off his scanners. Encouraged, he fed a little more, watching warily, raptly, as it began to flow through her body.

It seemed to irritate her veins after a few moments, however, and his frown deepened, as he pulled away. It would eat away at her veins if he kept up the transfer, he needed to dilute it. He unhooked his energon lines from her body and seemed to contemplate the issue at hand.

_**'You've found it?'**_ Optimus took so long to react, his reaction actually startled Ratchet. _**'Where?'**_

Getting an idea, Ratchet reached over to a small freezer filled with different bags of human blood. He selected one compatible and opened one end, feeding his energon into it, before he hooked the other end up to her own body. Even as the blood in the bag turned an odd purple, he monitored her vital signs. _**'Within her body. It seems the reason the Allspark radiation and the energon has reacted as it did, is because the shard had somehow imbedded itself deep within her human heart, feeding off her, and transforming in the process.'**_

_**'I see. And how is she doing?'**_

_**'Pit if I know! This is all new to me!'**_ His irritation was getting the better of him. If it had been something purely Cybertronian, _anything_ purely Cybertronian... Or purely human for that matter... He'd had millenia to work on his knowledge of Cybertronian mechanis and anatomy, perfecting his works. He'd had weeks to 'google' and 'research' everything he could possibly need to know abou _humans_, but this? Something of both species? He had no idea where to _begin_ treating.

_**'I don't see this sort of transformation every day. I am doing all I can to keep her online, but...'**_ He vented as her spark hummed dangerously once again, before settling down. _**'I need to account for multiple possibilities. Her body is rejecting her human blood, yet isn't ready for pure energon. Her organs are slowly shrinking and their processes appearing to slow, yet there is no telling how her body will react to their sudden loss.'**_

There was silence on the other end of the link, and a sound outside the door caught Ratchet's attention. He raised the level of his scan, and turned it on the wall, x-raying it and spotting the Ferrari on the other side, seeming to shift on it's wheels ever so slightly.

There in itself would be another issue. How would Sunstreaker treat his charge, knowing she was no longer human? Would he be more accepting, or less?

_**'I have faith in your abilities, Ratchet. If anyone can save her, it is you, my friend.'**_

The confidence did little to reassure him, however, and he was fairly certain it was tangible through the link. Even _he_ was aware of how tense he was. Instead of replying, he sent what gratitude he felt, before silencing his comm, watching over her as the blood and energon mix began to enter her system.

There was only one way to know for sure if this would work. Time would tell.

* * *

**Written** : Aug 8, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	22. Dreaming

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : SPOILER WARNING! In 'Bella's POV', there are references to the third movie, including an alt form change or two, and new enemies, etc etc. If you don't want to know, don't read. It's not necessary to the story line _at all_. This time, it's _just_ a dream, hence it being, well...pure confusion and humor.

And Happy Birthday to **Kallisto** This update is for you. :) I tried to put your name in properly, but for some reason it keeps deleting it. -.-'

* * *

Sunstreaker hissed darkly, glowering at the door. He ran his hand over the newly installed security panel once more, and growled when it beeped in the negative. _**'Ratchet, just how am I supposed to protect my, ugh, charge-'**_ The word still made him squirm uncomfortably. _Him_, of all mechs, given a _human_ charge? A _human_ charge? It just seemed...laughable. Yet, there they were. _**'-when the door won't open? Just what are you up to in there?'**_

There was no answer, and his optics narrowed dangerously. His dentals grinded behind his lip plates as he eyed the offending piece of metal, several different ideas and scenarios playing out in his processor. He could blast the door. It would be simple and efficient, but then he risked injuring his charge and incurring the wrath of both the medic _and_ Prime. And that wasn't even considering the human government -which was already waiting for them to make one wrong move- who were able to take down _Megatron_ and _Bumblebee_.

Not to mention, even if she did escape unharmed, there was always the fact he'd simply end up pissing Ratchet off. Not that he had a problem with that, but was one little squishy really worth the risk? After all, she'd undoubtedly be safe in the capable hands of the Chief Medical Officer.

He could continue to comm Ratchet and complain, however, it wasn't producing an answer. Ratchet just plain sucked at igoring people who irritated him, so that wasn't the case. It could only mean he was offline or had his internal communications link silenced.

He could verbally shout for the medic, but that would annoy everyone, and the last thing he wanted to do was get on the bad side of the humans. As annoying and squishy as they were, they were disturbingly creative in their paybacks. He _still_ reeked of cheese!

So he went with his final thought, rolling his optics and venting hard, before turning and leaning against the wall next to the door. _**'Sunstreaker to Prime. Ratchet isn't answering his internal communications, and I am unable to enter the medical bay.'**_

_**'And just what do you want in the medical bay?'**_ There was a dry tone to the voice, and a hint of amusement leaked through. _**'As far as I know, you are not one to actively volunteer to be checked out, no matter the severity of your injuries.'**_ It took the long speech before Sunstreaker read the strain in the link, but he put no stock into it. Prime was often stressed.

Sunstreaker grimaced ever so slightly, eyeing the humans who passed him. _**'I am not here for me. Didn't you assign me protection over a squishy?'**_ The line tensed even more, and suddenly, Sunstreaker realized Optimus was far _more_ tense than usual. _**'Has something happened?'**_ His spark lurched uneasily. He pictured the femme's face. From her smiles as her prank was pulled off perfectly, to the oddly pale, pained look in her eyes the evening before. Even his glimpse of her startling bravery -foolish bravery, in his processor- when she attacked Barricade to buy him time. _Something was wrong. She told that Maggie Madsen femme it was just a 'headache'._

There was an almost mental sigh, and a tone of wary hope flitted through. _**'Nothing Ratchet cannot take care of. However, if we are correct, you won't be able to call her a 'squishy' much longer.'**_

_**'Her transformation.'**_ It wasn't a question. All the bots had been made more than aware of what was happening, and he was honestly torn about it. On one hand, maybe as a Cybertronian, he wouldn't find himself so disgusted with her human form. On the other, she was _born_ human. That simple. She'd have the processor capabilities of a sparkling. _Great. Spark-sitting._ He grimaced, glancing at the door warily. _**'Wouldn't it have just been simpler to put her out of her misery when the change began? It's not even possible. She's just going to offline.'**_ He engine rumbled in annoyance at the tiny pang that ran through his spark, and he pushed it aside.

He wasn't being unnecessarily cruel. He was being realistic. Humans just didn't turn into Cybertronians. It hadn't happened once in the many millenia the other bots had seen, or undoubtedly _everyone_ would know about it. It hadn't happened in _his_ lifetime. It just...didn't happen.

In fact, there was honestly only one thing on this mudball of a planet, that Sunstreaker himself could see as _possibly_ transforming. The technology reverse engineered from Megatron's frozen body. And if that happened, Primus help those pathetic squishies, because every last one of those pieces would -highly likely- become Decepticons.

_**'Ratchet is fully aware of that. In fact, he has been up the entire lunar cycle, working to keep her stabilized. He has been keeping me updated through file attachments of scans and visual results, and the femme has nearly offlined seven times already. She has offlined three times, but Ratchet was able to revive her. Her body is now running on a spark and not an organic human heart.'**_ Prime vented over the link. _**'He has also reported she seems to be stabilizing. The rest of her transformation seems to have slowed incredibly again. There is no telling what will happen next.'**_

Frowning, Sunstreaker shuttered his optics. She was strong. He'd give the femme that much. She was also a pain in the aft, but she was strong. He was...honestly surprised and speechless over this news. Her body shouldn't have been able to handle the change. It was too agressive and too much for her, and yet...she was still online? Venting again, he shook his head and stepped away from the wall. _**'Well, when doc bot starts actually **_**talking**_** to you, can you tell him I'm going for a drive? I...'**_ He Googled the worldwide web, and transformed down into his Ferrari alt mode. _**'I need some fresh air.'**_

_**'Understood. Remain close though. We have to recouperate before we begin making any plans. I've been thinking over this 'Special Team' Secretary Keller wants me to lead. A combination of humans and Cybertronians working together-'**_ Sunstreaker sneered in disgust, but remained quiet. _**'-to end the Decepticon threat on Earth. I believe the idea has great merit, and Sunstreaker? I saw that.'**_

Blinking rapidly, it was about then that his audios picked up the sound of an approaching engine, and he focused his sensors behind him to pick up the slow approach of a red and blue flame decaled semi cab.

_**'Now go. I will take up watch over the medical bay and inform you of any changes to her condition.'**_

_**'Whatever.'**_ Sunstreaker began to roll carefully down the hall, allowing passing humans to move aside in plenty of time. It wasn't until the end of the hall that he paused, however, his spark lurching. His sensors focused behind him again, as Optimus transformed and stood, leaning against the wall next to the door, but Sunstreaker's attention was on the door itself.

If he was being honest with himself, he felt...guilty for leaving the femme like this. If she needed his help, he'd be too far to get to her in time. However, since when was he ever honest with himself about stuff like that?

Gritting his dentals, his processor flashed with images of her human face again. It was odd and uneven, and lumpy compared to their own. Covered in squishy organic 'flesh' that gave off salty oils when exposed to incredible heat. It twisted and scrunched up in very unattractive ways, but her eyes... As different as they were from his own, they were...oddly beautiful. Deep, they seemed to draw him in. Especially when they shone with honesty and sincerity.

Growling to himself, Sunstreaker moved forward, nearly taking out a soldier crossing the hall in front of him. "Hey! Watch where you're going!" He took amusement out of the way the human jumped, the larger man giving off a shrill, girlie shriek, before leaning against the wall. "What? Never seen a talking Ferrari before?" WIth a quiet snicker, he quickly took a corner, thankful for the newer, larger halls, and nearly sped down the hall, towards the nearby tarmac.

He just needed a quick lap around the base. That's all. Then he'd return to his duty, because that's all the femme was. A duty. A job. He was to protect her aggravating, fleshy aft. Nothing more. Besides, if her organic brain hasn't transformed yet, chances were she'd never survive _that_.

If only Sideswipe was here. His brother would be able to effectively distract him.

Venting sharply, Sunstreaker nearly skidded to a stop as a deep, jagged pain ran through his spark, along with a pang of longing. It took him a moment to recover, and he took off for the far end of the base, even faster than before.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

What was happening to me? One minute I'm relaxing on the cool floor, only for Ratchet to lift and move me to the cot. The now cool and fresh sheets just more or less knocked me out. Now I'm...well, I don't know _where_ I am. My eyes are so heavy to open. All I know is...it's hard to breathe.

Managing to pry my eyes open, I looked around. I could hear myself wheezing, like I was trying to breath through water or something. My eyes, on the other hand, told me I was sitting on a beach, surrounded by regular laughing people.

"Heya Bells! Nice of you to finally wake up!"

If I felt stronger, I probably would have jumped a mile high. Intead, I settled for whipping my head around, and staring in shock at Rika, who was sitting cross legged on a towel beside me. She smiled at me, her eyes sparkling with amusemernt. "R-Ri?" I coughed a little, an odd pressure in my throat.

"Jeez, what did ya do, swallow ocean water? You _do_ know you're not supposed to drink that stuff, right?" She raised an eyebrow, turning to me fully. "And who'd ya expect, Santa Claus?"

The snort was out before I even processed it, and I grimaced as it aggravated my already sore throat. _What's going on? It was just a headache before._ "Please, as if Santie Claus could make a bikini look _that_ good." Rolling my eyes, I slowly pushed myself into a sitting position. "What are we...doing here?"

"We're currently sunbathing after a rather exhausting swim." Her look turned odd, before she shook her head. When she looked away, glancing towards the sound of an ambulance siren, I watched as her eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "Oh. My. _God_." Then she busted up laughing. "That has got to be the gayest ambulance ever!"

Her words had me looking, curious. Not that I'd seen a lot of ambulances -thank God, I think- but I wanted to see what she considered 'gay'. My eyes spotted people all huddled around large ambulance, and my own jaw dropped. _Oh yeah! I forgot about that!_ It was very light, pale green in two thick stripes along the top and bottom of the vehicle, with a pure snow white in the center.

I rolled my eyes and smiled at her, giggling a little. "That's just Dr. Minty."

She snorted so hard, and fell over laughing. "Dr. Minty? Where the hell did you come up with that?"

I laughed again, before rubbing first at my head, which hurt like a bitch, then my throat, and finally the top of my chest. I felt _so_ off, and my breathing wasn't getting any easier. "That's 'supposedly' Ratchet's new form for the third movie." And I paused, frowning. _Wait...Ratchet?_ I suddenly got a mental image of Sunstreaker, and blinked. _If he's yellow, and Sideswipe is silver -and I'll be damned if I let him change his form! That new Convertible form sucked on Sides- then who was the red Ferrari? Autobot definitely, but _who_?_

"Oh yeah, I heard about that. There's also a new Mercedes and a Ferrari in the group." Rika's tone was thoughtful, and a quick glance told me she was staring out at the ocean before us.

I didn't recognize the beach, but I could smell the salt coming off the water. Shaking my head, I lay back down, ignoring the transforming ambulance in front of everyone, and how he began to whip wrenches around like they were daggers or something. "Yeah, and Sides goes topless." I giggled, before coughing, my throat seizing up for a second before clearing. "The NASCAR Decepticons are cool, though."

"Oh man, I so wanna see those! They looked cool in the filming videos. I bet they go so fast!"

The sound of approaching footsteps in the sand had me looking up with a laugh, and I smiled as my eyes landed on Sam and Mikeala. They were walking past, and didn't stop to chat, but Sam smiled at me and spoke cheerfully. "I like to go fast!" Mikeala giggled at his side, pulling him on.

I broke out into laughter, remembering when she told him about the double pump fuel carborator...or...whatever they were talking about. Was it fuel injection? Oh well, his words reminded me of his line as he eyed her body, and I couldn't help but snicker. Even as they wandered past, I turned away, intending to turn back to Rika.

That's when I caught a glimps of Sam's crimson optics.

Startled, I glanced back at him, but he was waving at me with his regular eyes, before turning forward, and I shook it off. "Dude, I'm seeing Decepticons everywhere." My eyes lifted off the sand, and I blinked, realizing the ocean was gone. In it's place was a large, empty, dark room, with a humungous table in the center. I stared at the figures at the table a moment, before pointing at the larger one. "See?"

Optimus sat across from Megatron, glaring at him darkly. In his hands, he held the largest playing cards I'd ever seen, and several pieces of his armor were missing. Megatron also looked a little worse for wear, and their pieces of armor were sitting idly on the wooden floor at the base of the table.

"Wow, I missed something."

"You and me both, hon." I muttered distractedly, tilting my head a little. _He's not..._

"You lost that hand, Megatron. We both know it." Optimus' optics were dark, and the smirk on his features was anything but friendly. It grew as Megatrong growled angrily at him, and put down his own cards, slowly working another piece of armor from his protoform and letting it drop. "You deal the next hand."

Megatron seemed to mutter in their native language, glaring daggers at the Prime, even as he gathered and shuffled the cards.

"No way..." Rika's words were just a breath next to me.

He dealt a few for each of them, before placing the rest of the cards in the center. Picking up his hand, he glared down at his cards, lip plates pulling back over his dentals, before he smirked equally as darkly. "I'm in gears." He moved several pieces of what looked like gears to the center of the table.

Optimus nodded, his own face a blank mask as he stared at the hand before him. "I'll see your gears and raise you my nuts."

Rika choked, even as the larger bot slid a disturbingly large amount of metallic nuts of varying sizes towards the pile in the center. "Are they really...playing poker?"

I blinked, the urge to laugh hitting me so hard, I literally collapsed with the force of it. I laughed so hard, my entire body hurt, and considering I was in pain to begin with, that wasn't a good thing. I had to struggle for several moments to calm enough to breathe clearly. Then I snorted. "_Strip_ poker, of all things!"

"Good thing Jazz isn't here, he'd probably start a conga line to 'I'm too Sexy'."

I nodded, watching the brothers as they piled more equipment and parts on the center of the table, their looks growing more intense as cards were dealt, and dark looks exchanged. "And both sets of twins would want in on that."

"Skids and Mudflap would probably scar the femmes for life."

With a giggle, I shook my head. "The other two would strip nekkie and pose over and over again, just for the pictures." I suddenly imagined Sunstreaker as a nude Cybertronian model and lost it again. I could just imagine his cocky look, standing tall and proud in his protoform, posing, flexing his 'muscles' for the photographer. Some of the poses I imagined were just so damned ridiculous, when I told Rika about them, we both nearly laughed ourselves into unconsciousness.

We continued to watch the bots playing poker for some time, before I managed to get to my feet. While the pain never faded completely, and my breathing didn't seem to get any easier, it wasn't quite as bad as around the time of the accident, so I pushed it off for now. I turned to Rika, blinking as I found myself alone.

Startled, I looked around, frowning as I realized I was standing, fully clothed, in the middle of a half empty parking lot outside of a large shopping mall. From what I could see, I was out in the middle of nowhere, and there was no one and nothing familiar at all around me.

"Great." I sighed, shifting a little and frowning. "Does this mean I'm gonna have to walk home?"

* * *

**Note** : I do not own the names Dr. Minty or Peppermint (The latter might come into use later in the story, and the former...probably will). They are curtesy of **Tatyana Witwicky**. Also, the last part isn't going to make sense. Don't worry if you get confused. Dreams rarely make sense, and mine usually involve multiple different scenarios all melted together as one. So expect a lot of plot holes and nonsensical things in 'Bella's POV'. Also, she doesn't really know she's dreaming, hence her easy partaking of what was going on around her.

And if anyone's confused the previous chapter's mention of the energy being in her head, and the dream being about her having a spark, let me know. I _think_ I tried to clear that up when I wrote this, but I don't remember.

**Written** : Aug 10, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	23. THe Confrontation

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_My first thought, when I finally woke up, was wondering who dumped a gallon of water down my throat. I felt like I'd drank an entire aquarium, my chest feeling really tight, and every breath hurting. It wasn't as bad as before, though. At least I didn't feel like I was trying to breathe through water anymore. I was wondering about my state of mind for my dream, when I opened my eyes and found twin sets of blue optics staring down at me._

_Then I kind of had a 'what the frag?' moment, staring up at the bots, before my memories came rushing back._

_The first thing I _did_ was glare darkly at Ratchet, promising some nasty payback if his drugs turned out to be more than standard painkillers. When I noticed the needle sticking out of my chest, I very nearly passed back out again._

_Was that _supposed_ to go there?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

"Dude, what the frag?" I don't think my eyes had ever been so wide. It wasn't only that the needle was sticking into my chest _directly_ over my heart that bothered me. It was also the fact that it was a damn _big_ needle, sticking into my chest, and it was filled with a glowing bright violet liquid. Raising my eyes back to the bots, I felt them narrow. "So I take it energon isn't poisonous to humans after all?"

Ratchtet vented softly, before turning to Optimus. He spoke quickly and quietly, his whistles and clicks echoing faintly in the room. It was another set of whistles and clicks that caught my attention, however, and I turned my head. The bot leaning against the far wall was the one who shocked me the most.

His optics caught my eyes and he vented, straightening and taking a step forward. "You claim she's fully grown, an adult." Now he spoke in English, as though doing it for my benefit. "Then give her a chance. Tell her the truth." His optics darted to Optimus, narrowing with disgust. "You coddle these pathetic squishies too much. If they are really so strong, then prove it. Stop treating them like sparklings." Then his optics darted to me, and he cocked his head to the side a little. "Your transformation progressed while you were offline, nearly stopping your formerly organic spark multiple times."

I froze, trying to take in his words. "Wait... What?" I blinked, my eyes going to the needle. "_Formerly_ organic...?" In an odd, frightening way, it made sense. If my heart changed, chances were my blood was changing as well. So the violet mixture, as I'd initially assumed, had to be some form of energon mixture. "So... I'm Cybertronian now? Or...part?" The idea was still so foreign. I close my eyes, relaxing my body and felt for the beat of my heart. I expected to feel my chest pulse with it, but it wasn't there. Even as I began to panic, I could feel a strange vibrating hum in my chest. The more I panicked, the more intense the vibrations, heat and humming got.

"You see, Sunstreaker, _that_ is why I did not want to break the news to the humans." There was a loud clank of metal on metal, and then a loud whistle mixed with a curse.

Even as I opened my eyes, I watched as silver knuckled fingers darted out, catching something that was falling towards me. It took a second for my eyes to leave Optimus' hand, and I watched as he narrowed a dark glare at Ratchet with a frightening amount of hostility. His deep, resonating voice lashed out in a vicious set of snarled whispers and whirled, the clicks sounding sharp, and Ratchet actually reeled back from the verbal assault, looking startled, and then appropriately quilty.

What _really_ surprised me, to the point of wondering if I was even awake at the moment, was when Sunstreaker pitched in with a snarl of his own, that I couldn't understand. Then again, he was speaking in their native language, so how did I even know he was snarling at whatever just about hit me, and not the shiny new dent on the side of his head?

"Uh, guys?" My voice was quiet, and I raised an eyebrow as they all settled down, staring down at me. "Kinda missed what the fuss is about here."

Optimus shifted his hand, putting a human-sized wrench on the table next to me, before venting. "Ratchet was being uncharacteristicly careless, that's all. How are you feeling, Bella? Ratchet has informed me your cerebral cortex is slowly undergoing the change, and your condition is precariously stable at the moment. Your organic spark has already transformed, due to your Allspark shard creating a smaller spark within your chest-"

"The spark is growing, however." Ratchet quickly cut him off, optics bright. "It is a young spark, but it is maturing quickly. The rest of your systems are also transforming. Your organs have begun to shrink, and are now about half the size they used to be. I've also noticed a small structure taking up the space where your lungs used to be, and it appears to be the main casing for an oxygen unit to allow you to breathe as we do. Finally, your 'veins' have begun to harden and turn, and the energon and blood mix I have been feeding you is what is keeping you stabilized at the moment."

It was bad enough he was telling me _all_ this, but it was even worse when I was under the gaze of three Autobots. _Those_ three Autobots, to be specific. I'm not sure how long I just sat there, processing his words. What the Primes had said to me before was suddenly becoming clear now. I'd been curious. I'd had assumptions and guesses, but now it was all confirmed.

And unlike before, I was forced to face it as a reality. I wasn't just a human running around with bionic limbs. I was _turning_ into a completely metallic being. I would soon be made up of metals not found on Earth. Soon... I actually felt like I wouldn't be me anymore. I'd be Bella, but not...me.

I don't know if I should have panicked then and there. Maybe I should have been crying, screaming, begging Ratchet to change me back or let me die, but I think I went into shock. I could only stare at them mutely, my mind working overtime to accept everything they were telling me.

"Tch!" Sunstreaker sneered. "I told you the squishies were pathetic." He glared down at me with dark optics, nearly hostile, and a hint of something else I couldn't identify. Part of me was afraid to identify it. It was his disgusted tone that really made something inside me give away.

"You try loosing everything you've ever known!" I was barely aware of snapping at him, watching as his optics spun to me. "You try living all your Primus-only-knows _how_ many years as what you are, Cybertronian. You try living a life that seemed set in stone! Then, turn human and see if _you_ don't panic! My entire fragging life is turning upside down! Things I thought were impossible are now apparently possible! I'm loosing my humanity! I'm loosing _what I am_! Everything I _thought_ I knew is now turning out to be lies! Can you honestly say _you_ wouldn't freak out too?" Then I paused, realizing what I was asking and who I was asking it of. "Of course you'd be _just_ fine, wouldn't you?"

Sunstreaker's optics narrowed dangerously.

I ignored it, my voice turning more and more sarcastic as I went. "You're the great and powerful Sunstreaker! You're practically perfect aren't you?" I could feel the tears running down my cheeks as I glared at him, my hands clenching into the sheets to keep me from leaping up and running out of the room. "Nothing _ever_ phases you, because you don't care jack shit about anyone but Sideswipe! If you turned human, you'd still be the same arrogant, cocky, _jerk_ you are now! You'd bitch and moan, but eventually get over it! You'd adapt! I don't even think I _can_! I know nothing about being Cybertronian! I don't have super advanced processors to google it and download all the information in a matter of freakin' seconds! I don't know _anything_! Of course I'm terrified, and if you honestly think I'm pathetic for it then _leave_!" I finally unlatched my fingers from the sheets in order to point a shaky hand to where I thought the door was. "I have enough going on without you practically oozing a 'Let the femme die' attitude!"

He jerked, as if he'd been electrocuted, and he blinked at me with shock. His optics were wide, blank of _all_ usual disgust and sneering. Instead, he just _stared_ at me, silently. I couldn't begin to fathom what he was thinking, but eventually let my hand fall back on the bed, hissing as it jolted my body, and consequently the needle in my chest. In response, a pain shot through me, and I sucked in a sharp breath, more tears falling. I felt hot, terrified, cold, shaky, weak, and pained all at once.

"Isabella, you need to calm yourself." Optimus' voice was quiet.

"Why do you keep calling me that?" I know I was whining now, but I grasped the distraction for what it was. "I prefer Bella, and I've told you that more than once. I know you don't just forget things like humans do. You call Sam 'Sam' and not Samuel." I turned my eyes to Optimus, breathing heavily through the blanket of pain that was slowly fading to the dull ache it had been before. At least the good thing about all this was I seemed to be unconscious for the worst of it.

...If that could be seen as a 'good' thing.

Optimus vented and nodded, seeming to relax ever so slightly. "I apologize for Sunstreaker, Bella, but you must not allow him to upset you."

The sound of footsteps, massive ones at that, retreating, had me looking. I watched as Sunstreaker left the room silently, and felt my heart, or spark, or whatever, lurch painfully. I knew he hated humans, but some part of me kept hoping he'd see his way past that. The Sunstreaker of most fanfictions, depsite his rough exterior, usually got used to humans. He adjusted, and even found himself liking them. Not that he'd tell them.

What hurt the most... I wanted him to get used to me. I...maybe foolishly...wanted to be friends with him. I knew it was highly unlikely, but...I wanted it.

Now I knew it wasn't going to happen.

I was just the squishy. The pathetic human who couldn't handle her transformation. I was weak, a mess, emotional, and he probably considered me a major pain in the ass.

I let myself melt into the cot, my body feeling the sheets under my arms as I pried my fingers of my other hand free of the sheets, feeling the sweaty spots where they were bunched up. I suddenly felt so tired, drained, and let out a deep breath. "Can I just go back to sleep now?" At least my last dream had been just that, and it was a relief too. I didn't remember much, just the beach and the poker thing. All I know was it was funny, it was relaxing, and I was happy there. I wanted to go back.

"I would prefer you remain awake for a while. You have been unconscious for some time."

"What am I supposed to do? Run a lap? Eat my last meal?" My eyes shifted from the door to Ratchet and I raised an eyebrow. "Taking a bunch of blood and tissue samples probably really isn't going to help, and I doubt it'll tell you anything more than your scans are already telling you."

"Do you not have questions?" It was Optimus who seemed surprised.

"I don't want this." Well, that was debatable. Some small part of my mind told me of all the benefits of being Cybertronian, but all I could think about was the fact it would alienate me from everyone and everything. I'd be a Cybertronian, but know nothing of their world or customs. I didn't even know their _language_ for Christ sake! I'd have been born human, but made of metal. I'd have one foot in both worlds and felt like I wasn't going to belong in either. "I'm gonna be a freak." The damn tears were back. "I'm supposed to be human! I don't know _anything _about being Cybertronian!"

"We will help you." His words were quiet. "That is a promise."

And it only reassured me slightly. I couldn't even bring myself to thank him or make a comment. I just closed my eyes and sagged even more into the bed, zoning out. I could hear them talking over me, and ignored them, allowing that blanket of darkness to slowly drape over me. I just...didn't want to deal with this right now.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

He couldn't remember the last time his system revved so loudly. He was angry. Angry and...admittedly, a tiny bit hurt. He was also shocked that the femme would call him out on everything. Her defiance was annoying, but...he had to respect her bravery, facing down a creature over a hundred times her size. He knew that she knew he could squash her at any time, despite the rules, if he got annoyed enough.

When he was told she was changing, he didn't think much of it. She'd be stronger, faster, smarter, and more capable of actually keeping up with them. She also wouldn't be as frail, and wouldn't age as fast. Finally, she -hopefully- wouldn't excrete slimy oils from her skin anymore, or stink when she got so sweaty. He saw it as a good change.

Hearing it from her point of view, however, gave him far more to think about than she realized. She was wrong, assuming he'd be fine with it, after adapting. There would _be_ no adapting. If he changed, and even if his brother were there and changed with him, he wouldn't know the first thing about their world. Not actually experiencing it, anyways.

So he found himself more annoyed than anything, because his spark was sympathizing with her. She would be introduced into a world she knew nothing about. Venting hard, he grimaced and stood off across the base alone. He thought for a long moment, before comming Optimus.

_**'Sunstreaker to Prime. I am...'**_ He hated admitting it, but without Bumblebee actually here to help, Jazz was still in stasis, and his brother wasn't here at the moment, there was only one other bot he felt safe enough talking to about it. _**'I am...confused. I am uncertain how to handle-'**_ Was 'handle' the right term? Why did he care, again? _**'-this new situation. The femme was...wrong. I don't think I would handle the transformation well at all.'**_

_**'I understand, Sunstreaker. You forget, I know you better than most.'**_ There was a quiet patience in Prime's voice that helped to settle the young warrior's spark. _**'The femme is beyond frightened. She feels... I believe she feels she would be unwanted in both our worlds. Her word was...'freak'. Not belonging in either world. I have promised to help her all I can, but she will require more than just **_**my**_** assistance.'**_

_**'I am to help her as well, then?'**_ He wasn't sure how he felt about it, but he definitely wasn't looking forward to confronting her after that little explosion. The truth was, he _didn't_ adjust to people that well, and though he'd settled with the knowledge of being her guardian, he still found himself almost paranoid of accidentally hurting the femme. At first it was because of his duty. If he harmed her, he'd have failed to protect her. Now, however, it was...more. He didn't _care_ for her, per say, but she'd definitely grown tolerable to him.

_Barely_!

She was fun, sassy, smart, resourceful, brave... If she were Cybertronian, _born_ Cybertronian that is, he might have had an interest in her as more than 'just a charge'. As it was, her turning Cybertronian would be interesting, at best.

_**'She is your charge, is she not? If the idea truly bothers you, I will take her for my own charge and release you from your duties. You will no longer have to put up with her defiance, nor worry about taking care of her.'**_

He tried to picture it. His optics glanced out over the endless forest around them, and he pursed his lips plates, his mind running over the femme. He pictured the scenarios, her running to Optimus when she feared for her life, instead of him. Her turning her smiles and joking matter to the larger bot. He mentally pictured her in Optimus' grasp. She'd be safer with Prime than with _him_.

But...He grimaced sharply as a pang ran through his spark. _She knows Sideswipe. She knows what he'll look like. What he'll sound like. She could point him out on the human streets._ She didn't have to be his charge for that, but it would make it a lot easier, because he would have to travel with her to protect her. _She's my link to my brother._ His optics narrowed as his spark panged ever so slightly again, as if arguing with him. _Shut up, you! She's a link to my brother and _that's all_!_

He would _not_ admit he'd grown oddly accustomed to the strange femme. He would not, because it wasn't true. At all. She was a means to an end. An honor-bound duty he needed to comlpete. That's all.

_**'Sunstreaker? Are you well?'**_

_**'No. There is far too much going on in my processor for me to be 'well'.'**_ His expression was grim and his tone dark, but there was a vulnerability he rarely let loose. _**'But I am uninjured. I...will continue my duties as her guardian, and I will help her adjust.'**_

The line was silent a long moment, but he could sense the confusion and intrigue leaking over the line. _**'Alright. If you are certain. Ratchet estimates her transformation will be complete in two Earth days, her brain being the next major transformation. He believes that will happen some time this evening. He has also given you permission to enter the medical bay and sit watch over her, if you so desire. If not, I will be the one to do so.'**_

_**'I will do it.'**_ Sunstreaker moved off the building he was leaning against, transforming down and heading towards the main hangar. He'd get some recharge now, so he could remain awake all night. If he was going to do this duty, he was going to do it right. _**'Just tell Ratchet not to offline my charge in the meantime.'**_

_**

* * *

**_

**Written** : August 11, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	24. Bedridden

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Ratchet wasn't only a slave driver, he was a cruel, sadistic, son-of-a-bitch, too! It wasn't bad enough I was bed ridden by not only his orders but by my own body's lack of strength and incredible moments of sheer, blinding agony. No. He had to add to it taking constant scans, picking me with needles, or prodding me whenever I tried to go to sleep._

_He tried to make me eat something, but apparently the cafeteria food had gone even more downhill from before. What I'm guessing was supposed to be oatmeal turned into a chunky popcicle when I tried to pull the spoon out, and just watching it sit there in front of me, I lost any and all appetite I had._

_Of course, would Ratchet let it go and leave me alone? _

_Does Megatron sing show tunes and pole dance on top of sky scrapers for fun?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

I sighed heavily, sagging back on the bed, and rolling my eyes at Rika. She looked so concerned, but she kept going on about all the 'good points' to being Cybertronian. Not like she'd ever get to find out, though I was sorely tempted to ask to borrow a shard from the bots and give it a try.

I honestly didn't know at that point, if she was saying it just for my benefit, or if she really meant it, but I was sick and tired of listening to her either way. I tried to pretend I'd fallen asleep, in hopes she'd feel put out and leave, but she giggled and kept right on talking, this time direction inquiries up at Ratchet.

"Why are you asking me?" Boy, did he sound annoyed! Then again, I couldn't blame him. I'd heard about Sunstreaker remaining with me all night, and having to online Ratchet more than once as my body showed signs of trouble adapting to the changes. I was shocked, but not given the chance to thank him. As soon as he woke Ratchet -who subsequently woke me in his attempts to keep me stabilized- for the third time, he was dismissed and left without a backwards glance. "Isabella is wide awake still."

"Gee, thanks." I narrowed my eyes at him darkly, before opening them fully and turning to Rika. "Sorry, was trying to suffocate a fly with my eyelids."

She snorted, then yelped as she was shoved out of the way, and I suddenly found Ratchet's face startlingly close to mine. I couldn't help but lean back with a shriek of my own, feeling myself being blown further and further into the paper thin mattress with every one of his breaths.

"Jesus, Ratchet, ever heard of a breath mint?" I snorted then, getting a mental flash of green and white. "You sure don't live up to your future name, Dr. Minty!"

He narrowed his optics at me. "My designation is not 'Dr. Minty' so I would hope I do not live up to his name." He raised an optic ridge, and I felt the tell tale tingle of a scan run through me. "I am detecting no insects within your organic optics, nor anywhere else within your body."

"It was an excuse, Ratchet, relax." Rika pushed at his cheek with both hands until he moved up and away. "I've heard about getting a big head but that's just ridiculous." I snorted at her words, and she rolled her eyes. "So are you really tired, or just tired of listening to me rant and ramble?"

"Both. Sorry." I sighed a little. "I just... I don't even want to acknowledge that I'm changing. I mean, it _feels_ impossible, but I know it's not. I don't want to think about it happening. Good side or bad. I'm human. I only know how to _be_ human! I'm... I'm gonna step on people! I'm not gonna be able to balance right! I won't know how to transform, or take another form, or even if I _can_ take another form! Where am I even supposed to _begin_ to adapt?" It seemed...so completely impossible.

"Has Optimus not told you we would be there to help you?" Ratchet was frowning as he eyed me. "You are not alone. We will help you to adapt to your new body."

"If you even can! You don't know what to expect with this change!" I was getting panicked, but I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. When I opened them again, I spotted him eyeing a needle at the tip of his finger thoughtfully and narrowed my eyes. "Stick me, and by Primus I'll kick you!"

He paused, even as Rika snorted on a giggle, and vented. "I was merely considering an adjustment in your pain medication, however, if you feel well enough to joke like that, you can't feel too badly." The tip of his finger flipped back over the needle and he withdrew his hand, before raising an optic ridge. "And I would not suggest kicking me, unless you wish to add injury to your changing form. You are not yet made of a strong enough material to cause injury to anyone but yourself."

"You need to learn human sayings and mannerisms." Pursing my lips, I raised an eyebrow right back at him. I stared up at his form, the yellow seeming old and familiar to me. It was something I recognized, and I frowned. "Why would you change your alternate form?" He blinked at me in confusion, and I felt my cheeks burn when I realized he had no idea what I was talking about. "I mean, in the third Transformers movie, it hadn't come out yet where I came from, it was due to come out in 2011 and would be set in the same year... My point is, you were a white and green hummer in that one. Why would you change your color?"

"White and green, sounds kinda like a giant tic tac or something."

I smirked at Rika. "He _looked_ like a giant tic tac. Where do you think I got the nickname 'Dr. Minty' from?" Rolling my eyes a little, I turned back to Ratchet. "I just don't get why you'd change. You all look fine the way you are. Well, ok..." My mind went off on another tangent. "Optimus I can get with the trailer, and Jetfire's parts, and that looks fine. But Sideswipe becomes a Convertible and it just doesn't look sleek and sexy on him, the way the 2009 Corvette form looks. I'm used to your yellow hummer form, so your green and white form just throws everyone off. It throws _me_ off." I grimaced a little.

"I have found myself quite fond of my current form as well, so I do not believe I have any reason or urge to change it." He leaned up and moved away. "How _is_ your pain level?"

"My chest feels heavy. I can feel that damn needle in my chest." And it was honestly disturbing to look at. Needles just didn't _go_ there! "My head hurts, and I feel _really_ tired, like I haven't slept in a week. My entire body burns like it's on fire, and there's a painful throb, but... I've had worse." I shrugged slightly, and grimaced, hissing, as it pulled at the needle in my chest. "Ow! Do you have to have that needle _there_?"

"Your veins have yet to change. There has been slight corrosion through them because of the tainted blood and energon mix I have been feeding you. Not enough to cause an issue, but if I were to move the needle, I fear the corrosion would possibly make the entry hole larger and cause internal bleeding. There are still parts of your body that have not yet changed, and the energon within your blood _may_ in fact create an infection."

"In other words, here good, anywhere else bad." I nodded slightly. "Ok, I just need to remember not to look down then."

He turned away, and I turned my head to watch as he walked over to Jazz. He fiddled around with some wires, and I frowned, watching him. It was like he could feel it, too. "Jazz's systems are recovering nicely. He is long stable. I believe he should be online within the Earth week, if everything keeps up the way it's going." He didn't even glance over as he worked, opening Jazz's chest plates and getting to work.

"I'm glad he's going to be ok."

Now Ratchet paused, turning to look at me. "And he has you to thank for that. Have the Primes spoken to you again?"

"What do you want me to say?" I was frowning, feeling like I was somehow letting them down. They didn't hide how shocked they were that I'd spoken to _an_ ancient Prime at all, let alone more than one. Now it was like they expected so much more from me. "I'm not the Allspark reborn. I'm not some all powerful God. I only saw them that one time. I don't know their plan for you guys. I don't hold the key to your world being restored!" The pain was back in my eyes, the burn so bad I had to close my eyes to keep from crying. "I'm sorry."

"No, Isabella, you have no reason to apologize." He stepped over, slightly. "Perhaps we expect too much. It is just... None of us have ever had so much as one contact with any Prime. You saw them all. They asked you to use a shard of the Allspark, and you brought Jazz back from the Matrix. This is...overwhelming for us all. I cannot imagine how much more so it must be for you, and we are not making things easier, are we? Forgive me." He bowed his head, when I looked.

I was honestly humbled by his reaction. The Ratchet I knew from fanfictions was always harder, more rougher, and not one to really apologize. Then again, those were _fan_fictions for a reason. "Ratchet." He looked at me curiously, and for a strong moment, I was tempted to ask if he was on something. This wasn't the Ratchet I was used to. Then again, I also remembered that Ratchet tended to hide behind war-hardened defences. With a sigh, I smiled a little. "Thanks, but you don't have a reason to apologize. You didn't do this to me."

"But I also couldn't reverse it." He seemed to sag a little. "All my medical knowledge was useless to stop your transformation."

"Because it wasn't _meant_ to be stopped, Ratchet." I sighed and looked at him, raising an eyebrow. "The Primes wanted this, remember?" He seemed to consider, and I smiled again. "In everything I've read or seen in my world, you were always the number one, incredible medic. If it was meant to be stopped, you'd have been able to stop it, trust me."

He seemed to nod a little, before turning around stiffly. "I... I had better return to work on Jazz. If I do not complete these repairs, he will be in unbelievable pain when he onlines."

"I think you embarrassed him, Bells." Rika stage whispered with a grin. "Awww, that's cute!"

His hand moved like lightning, and there was a loud clang that had me nearly jumping out of my skin. Then the pain came, and I couldn't help the choked cry, curling up as the fire spread out from my chest, and making it impossible to breathe.

"Slag it!"

"You moron! Does it actually _say_ somewhere in your mental dictionary that it's _good_ to scare the hell out of a patient with a flipping _needle_ in her heart? Is your stupidity a talent, or did you have to practice?"

"Rika..." I choked and sucked in a pained breath. My chest was tight, and it felt like my lungs were fighting me. I had to blink back spots, the tears hot on my cheeks, and the rest of my face feeling like ice. "Shut...up..."

"If you hadn't slagging annoyed me, femme-"

"I was _teasing_, you overgrown toaster!"

"I do not _like_ being 'teased'!" His hands were working overtime over me, gently pressing me on my back. Unfortunately, the slight pressure on my chest made it even harder to breathe, and I gasped underneath him, trying to move away. "Calm, Bella! Your spark is pulsing overtime, and your body cannot accomodate it! You are safe, you must calm. And _you_ must leave." I didn't miss the dark look he shot Rika.

"It's not my fault you act like a freakin' dumbass when embarrassed, Peppermint!"

"If you did not do such stupid things-"

"This coming from the robot that threw a freakin' _wrench_ at the far wall and scared the shit outta my best friend!"

"She did not defecate herself-" I could have happily died right about then, or maybe curled up in a hole in the middle of nowhere. "-and that has nothing to do with this!"

I sucked in a painful, deep breath and glared at them through watery eyes. "Would you _both shut up_?" That took the entire breath, and I spent what felt like forever panting deeply, watching as they turned to me, one with worried eyes, and the other with more annoyed optics, but both luckily shut up. Closing my eyes, I tried to relax and breathe deeply. The more I managed to calm, the better I was able to breathe. Soon, all the pain faded. Well, except the usual. "Thanks guys." I panted a little more, giving them both dirty looks. "I'm gasping for air, and you're bitching like an old married couple."

"Oh ew. No way, he's like what... Old enough to be my great, great, great, great, great..." She paused a moment, before smirking. "Old enough to make the Earth look like a newborn!"

"So? For all I know, you like the cougar type." I grinned at her as she twisted her face into a combination of a scowl and a grimace.

"Says the girl who thinks the twins are hot."

I paused a moment. _When did I tell her that? _Did_ I tell her that?_ Shaking it off, I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, but they're like way younger than Ratchet. He's _old_, old. Even Optimus is younger, and _he's_ way older than the twins." I paused again, becoming all too aware that we were being glared at with a steadily darkening glare. "Um, not that, that's a bad thing." I turned to Ratchet now. "You're still a great bot, and totally hot in your own way!" Rika snickered and I felt my cheeks burst into flame. "Oh _shut up!_" With a smack to her arm, I tried to glare at her, but couldn't help but bust up into giggles.

Ratchet for his own part seemed to mutter to himself in his own language, before turning away. He went back to work on Jazz, completely silent, as if either purposely forgetting we were there, or just ignoring us.

Quickly, I looked to Rika, who had a glint in her eye. "So help me, if you say one more word to embarrass or annoy Ratchet, I'm gonna ram this needle so far up your ass, you'll give everyone you kiss an alien tetnus shot." I stared at her, and she blinked down at me. Neither of us moved, or made a sound. Surprisingly, the small, metallic, grinding laugh I heard _didn't_ come from her. With surprise, I turned and found Ratchet shaking his head, his shoulders shaking ever so slightly. The sound came again, and I could only stare in shock as Ratchet laughed.

Even Rika looked absolutely flabberghasted.

It took him a moment to stop, and he shook his head again, before turning to look at me. "It just never stops with you. I will say one thing. If this is how you are with Sunstreaker, I believe he has finally met his match." There was another chuckle, before he turned back to his work with Jazz, muttering in clicks and whistles. Amused sounding clicks and whistles.

_I've never...heard Ratchet laugh before._ People had written about it, but it always took a lot to make him smile or laugh. To say I was shocked, would be an understatement. Then...I smiled. _It's nice to see he's not as nasty as some people have him. His bedside manner could use some work, but otherwise... He's human...well, Cybertronian, but...he's got emotions. He can laugh and smile._ Yeah, maybe... Maybe if the bots really were going to help me, this wouldn't be _quite_ so bad.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_The day was nice. I didn't feel quite so bad, except for that one moment where Ratchet threw a wrench at the wall and scared the hell out of me. I spent the day with Rika, until evening came around and she was more or less kicked out. That was actually a funny moment. I was pretty damn sure Ratchet was sorely tempted to punt her across the base. Either way, Sunstreaker came in not long later, and seated himself next to my cot._

_I said 'hi', but he only looked at me and inclined his head ever so slightly. He still had this broody look about his optics, and didn't speak to me, but he didn't openly disrespect me either. I...couldn't help but wonder if it was because he didn't want to be there, or if it was something else. I made a mental note to ask Optimus later if he'd been ordered to watch over me._

_The last thing I wanted to be was a burden. And that hurt more than anything, because I knew that in a matter of days at the most, that's _all_ I would be._

_As the day wore on to night and Ratchet retired, I found my head and chest beginning to hurt more. I couldn't help but panic, despite Sunstreaker's really shoddy attempts to keep me calm. I knew. I knew it was only so long before I was going to change. Soon I'd be Cybertronian, and the _real_ fun would begin. And as the pain got worse, I realized that soon would be coming faster than I liked._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Note** : Oh sweet Primus, that 'alien tetnus shot' got me laughing my aft off! ROFL! *laughing hysterically* Sweet Primus, that was a good one!

**Written** : August 13, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	25. Walking the Walk

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_This is _not_ fun! Those laughing at me are earning themselves a spot on my black list, and trust me, payback's a bitch, people. Those who pity me are earning themselves a kick in the aft...as soon as I figure out how. And those who are actually sympathizing and attempting to help me are my saviors! _

_On the upside -Primus, there's an _upside_ to this?- I was right. My transformation didn't take long. On the downside... I was right. I didn't know jack squat about what to do, once my body finished transforming. It all happened so fast! One minute Sunstreaker's apparently listening to me snore -I do _not_ snore!- and the next, I'm screaming in agony loudly enough to wake Ratchet and probably half the base. _

_Ratchet told me my body seemed to suddenly decide to transform all at once. All day most of my least vital organs had shrunk and disappeared, and now the rest were turning. That included my brain, my organic eyes, my skin, my hair, my _DNA_, my...well, everything. I just...finished transforming overnight._

_I was told my heart stopped numerous times, and almost refused to restart. Ratchet gave me shit for that, like somehow I'd done it on purpose just to scare a few millenia off his life. Sunstreaker was smirking about it, saying I was a trouble maker even while unconscious, and that he liked it. He was joking of course...right?_

_Either way, now that I was alive, stable and apparently my body had taken a few hours to adapt... I was no longer ordered to bed rest._

_It...kind of helped my bed was a flattened mess under my new body._

_Oh, yeah, did I mention was only a little bigger than the other femmes now?_

_Anywho, my point is... I've changed. I've stabilized. Now...for the fun part._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**(Next ****Day)**

"Come on, Bella! You can do it!" Rika had her head tilted back, staring up at me, with the wildest look imaginable on her face. I wasn't sure if she was freaked, excited, or both, even as she waved a hand. "Show that pain in the ass how it's done."

There was a derisive snort. "Yes, femme. Show me how it's done." The mech rolled his optics, and I growled, causing him to smirk at me. "What's wrong? Getting angry? If you want to _attempt_ to injure me, you're going to have to stand up to do it."

"No, I don't." I answered back, smugly. Oh, I was annoyed, but at the same time amused. Sunstreaker was facing me cockily, only a few feet taller than me by now, definitely a lot wider, and smug as hell as he stared down at my prone form. However, his back was to another bot in the room. One whose expression told me he was on the same page and all too eager to help. "Please?" I pouted at him and pleaded, and the bot smirked.

_**CLANG!**_

Sunstreaker yelped, jumping, and spun with a growl as his hand came up to the back of his head. "What the frag was that for?"

"You are not helping, Sunstreaker." Ratchet moved forward, bypassing the mech. "Optimus has left me in charge of the femme, while he is away on the reconnaissance mission, and I deem you are not being helpful. If you _wish_ to remain here with your charge, change your tone." He stepped up next to me, before bending down. "That was a bad fall, are you injured?"

"I'm made of metal, and fell like...fifteen feet at the most." That was about my height now, right? So...my aft fell... Wait, _why _am I trying to calculate it? I raised an eyebrow at him. "My ass hurts a little, but otherwise I'm fine, and no... That's not permission to scan it." He held out his hands, and I sighed, closing my eyes for a second to take a deep breath. "I hate this."

"You merely need to learn your new center of balance." He gripped my arms, and I gripped back, carfeul not to let my fingers slip in between the seams of his armor, and he hefted me with disturbing ease to my feet. "Your entire body mass has changed, as well as your composition. As soon as you find your balance, you will master walking again in no time."

"And the first thing I'm gonna do is steal every inch of barbed wire from the fences surrounding NEST-" Is_ there even barbed wire on the fences? Are there even _fences_ at all?_ "-and use it to scrub every inch of Sunstreaker's paint job." Said mech growled and I smiled mock sweetly at him, before turning away from him.

"You have mentioned this 'NEST' more than once now." Ratchet frowned in confusion as he gripped my arms firmly, holding me steady as I awkwardly shifted my feet, accidentally kicking him more than once in the metallic shin. "What is that?"

"NEST? Well, I never understood what the acronym was for, but it's basically the combined humans and Autobots who are working together to help stop the Decepticons. If I had to _guess_ what the acronym stands for... Maybe...Nonbiological Extraterrestrial Stabilization Team? Or Nonbiological Extraterrestrial Species Treaty or something?" Hadn't I read it, somewhere? What it meant? "Basically, it's the best of the best of the human world and the Autobots working to stop Decepticon activity around the planet. I guess...they just haven't named it yet." It wasn't a big feature, so I didn't see how naming the group would do any harm.

"Hmm...interesting." Ratchet slowly lowered his arms, and my legs shook as I tried to stand on my own.

It wasn't just a matter of willing it anymore. My brain was working like a super advanced computer, looking for command prompts and security codes and warnings and stuff. Ratchet was trying to explain it, and I was hearing it all, but I kept getting the information confused.

Here I was, more or less naked by their standards, standing awkwardly in the middle of the medical bay. I was like may...fifteen feet or so tall, really tiny build otherwise. Sunstreaker called me an 'adolescent' as far as my body went, and Ratchet stated that would change as the last bits of my body changed to my new self. In a sense, he said it was like a sped up version of frame changing for the sparklings. My body had to catch up to my human mental capacities.

So...why wasn't I shrinking?

Compared to them, what I knew could fit on the head of a pin. I was more or less like a sparkling, mentally. Of course, when I brought that up, Ratchet gave me a funny look and told me I was a mature human being. An adult. That meant my body had to progress to the 'adult' stage.

At least, that's what he and everyone else seemed to be guessing.

My protoform was a dark grey-ish black metal, with tons of cables and stuff, and the doc bot even told me I had two bright blue optics now.

That was another thing. I felt like all my senses were kicked into high gear. I could hear the hum my spark gave off. I could hear Rika's frantic heartbeat. My sense of smell was a lot sharper, but oddly enough, strong smells didn't hurt me. My body was a thousand times more sensitive, hence my avoidance of Ratchet's cables. He'd gripped mine on the inside of my elbow, by accident, and I nearly screamed as my mind nearly went black, trying to process the odd sensation.

I wasn't sure if it was pleasurable or painful, or some sick combination of both, but I more or less begged Ratchet not to grab that place again. That almost started a Cybertronian version of 'The Talk', until I threatened to throw something really big at the medic, and paint him bright pink with purple spots in his recharge.

"There. That wasn't so bad." Sunstreaker approached with a raised optic ridge.

"You sure you wanna get that close to me?" I raised one back, one of the first things I learned to do in this new body, besides talking, and shifted my foot to move forward. However, I forgot that my feet were a lot bigger, and Rika was alarmingly close. Hearing a yelp, my head shot down, and I nearly recoiled as though burned to keep from stepping on Rika. My foot caught against the front of my other calf, and I gasped as I lost my balance.

I reached out, trying to grab onto _something_ to stabilize myself, even as Ratchet ducked down and grabbed Rika, pulling her out of the way. The arms that grabbed onto mine, pulling me forward sharply, were a shock. The warm, hard surface I felt myself falling against was even more so.

And the owner of the bright yellow chest I was now pressed firmly against, nearly caused me to pass out.

"Uh, thanks." I could feel my entire _body_ burning, my hands pressed against the edges of his chest. I could feel the way his arms seemed to shift, his grip tightening around my back momentarily, before he abruptly released me, only to grab my arms. "Nice grip you got there." I found myself distracted by the odd vibration coming from his chest, before realizing what I'd just _said_.

He smirked and his optics flashed, even as I groaned in horror. "You haven't seen anything yet."

"Pervert!" I slapped at his arm, while trying to take a step back, and yelped again as my legs threatened to give out, only for Sunstreaker to keep me on my feet. "Thanks, Sunny." His optics narrowed, and I swallowed nervously as his almost teasing smirk faded into a dark glare.

"Don't. Call. Me. That." His optics flashed, and his grip tightened until it began to get painful.

"I'm sorry!" I tried to tug out of his grip, my arms already hurting, but he refused to let me go. "It's habit! I didn't mean to upset you!" I knew the name bothered him, but he'd never been so harsh on anyone who used it before, which led me to wonder what it was about _me_ saying it that bothered him so much.

There was a low rumble behind me. "Sunstreaker, release your grip on the femme, or lose your arms."

As if physically slapped, Sunstreaker released me and stepped back, looking almost shocked. With a rumbling engine of his own, he turned and left the room, leaving me standing on shaky legs in the middle of it. The room was awkwardly quiet for a long moment, and I couldn't keep the confusion from rolling in me. I tried to understand his reactions.

Fanfictions never portrayed Sunstreaker as unnecessarily harsh, and when they did, there was a damn good reason for it. I never, in my wildest imagination, could have thought he'd strike out like that. But he did. And now I couldn't help but wonder...what if he did it again? I knew it wasn't likely, Sunstreaker was an _Autobot_ for a reason, but I couldn't let it go either.

Shaking my head, I tried to ignore the uncomfortable silence and focus on my balance. It was awkward, but I swayed back and forth a little, and I could have laughed at the relief when I realized all I needed to do was make tiny adjustments to keep me from falling. It was so stupidly easy, I felt even dumber for taking so long to understand it.

It was as if the others felt the tension in the room, too. Ratchet kept an alert optic on me, but otherwise remained silent, and Rika bit her lip a little, before deciding to speak up. "Hey, uh... Look at the bright side." I turned to Rika who was now seated on Jazz's arm. She offered me an awkward smile and shrugged. "At least you're standing."

I nodded and looked down at my metallic feet. I didn't look like I did in the dream with Jazz, so I wondered why I'd taken that form then. Unless it was just maybe an unconscious representation of what I'd thought I'd look like. After all, I never expected to balloon to over a dozen times my natural size.

"Unfortunately, standing is the easy part." Ratchet took a single step forward. "I would suggest we move on to _walking_. Bumblebee has informed me he is bringing Samuel Witwicky in for what he calls a 'check up'. They boy has been complaining of irritation in the burns on his hands." The medic shook his head and vented. "And considering the nature of the injuries, he believed it best not to take him to a human doctor."

I nodded again, sliding a foot forward awkardly. I reached out immediately, grabbing Ratchet's outstretched arm, as my legs wobbled, and frowned. I hated that I knew the knowledge to it was _there_, in my head. I just couldn't access it. I didn't know _how._ I tried to take my mind off the step by step -literally- lesson.

"Is it possible he's been infected by Allspark radiation? I know he probably will be in two years, I think he's supposed to be." My eyes were on my feet as I slowly lifted and moving them, each step getting a little sturdier. "But I mean, a lot of people in my world-" I knew it was a dimension, but it might as well have been a whole other world. "-theorize that Sam ended up either turning into the Allspark reborn, or an Autobot, or a hybrid of Cybertronian and human parts."

There was a small sound. "That is highly unlikely. I only sensed Allspark radiation _on_ the boy, not within his body, at least scan, and I kept scanning him as we left the city and returned to Hoover Dam base. The radiation seemed to lighten and lessen, and I did not allow him to leave until it was completely gone from his body. Plus, Samuel did not ingest energon, nor does he possess an Allspark shard."

My hand clenched around Ratchet's as I stiffened. _Um, yeah, he does._ My eyes-err..._optics_ widened as I stared at the ground. _Oh bloody hell! What do I do about that? I saw fanfictions where people interfered with the second movie, and it all went to hell and back. Not to mention, if Sam's 'destiny' is to save Optimus..._ Biting my lip, I sighed. _But I already told them a lot of the basic stuff..._ There was only one real solution I could think of. I needed to talk to Optimus.

"Isabella?"

With a groan, I rolled my eyes -an awkward feeling with the new eyes- at Ratchet. "Are you allergic to calling me 'Bella', or do you just do that to be aggravating?"

He raised an optic ridge, but otherwise showed no sign of listening. "You paused and gripped my arm, your spark output increasing dramatically. Is something wrong?"

"I just...realized I need to talk to Optimus."

If he was the least bit put out by my statement of needing to talk to Prime and not him, he didn't look it. He simply nodded. "Optimus will be back within the Earth hour. If you wish to speak to him, privately, you may wish to complete your re-learning of how to walk."

And so it went. I was forced to pay even more attention to my walking than before. Twice I tripped over the edge of the berth, as Ratchet helped me circle around it, as I wasn't used to the size difference in my feet. Once I slipped, three times I tripped, and he caught me easily with each mis-step. By the time I was about ready to give up, it really hit me, I'd circled the berth over a dozen times, and tripped half that.

It wouldn't be easy walking down the halls with humans marching around. Even less so when it _really_ sank in I was butt-ass naked, but I... I was actually walking!

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Ever have one of those 'facepalm' moments? I was prone to them, but as soon as it sank in I was nekkie and gripping Ratchet's arms, I was nearly literally floored. It was a thousand times more humiliating when I realized that I'd been pressed fully up against Sunstreaker, _naked_. Maybe that's what that insufferable smirk was about._

_I really needed to hit him._

_Actually, first I needed to find out _what_ about me calling him 'Sunny' bothered him so very much. Because honestly, if he hated me that much, why was he still there? Why did he volunteer to help me out, catch me instead of letting me fall? Why didn't Optimus, who would have _had_ to have seen or sensed something, take him off guard dog duty?_

_And if it wasn't out of hatred, what was it? Was it... Was it Sideswipe? Was it the memory of his brother? Oh sweet Primus, I think I've hit the jackpot and just got the booby-prize. Why didn't I see it before? No wonder he was pissed!_

_My list of things I needed to get done was growing ever longer, but I unfortunately had to put 'talking to Sunstreaker' further down than I would have liked. First thing's first, I needed advice, and there was only one bot I could get it from._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : August 14, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	26. Naked

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I'm not a voyeur. I'm not the 'watching' kind, or the kind that visits nude beaches for the view. Uh, either 'view'. I'm not a streaker, a flasher, or anything remotely like that. Hence...why I was so utterly freaked right out when I realized I was completely and totally naked. Sure, I already kind of knew that, but now it was _really_ sinking in. Especially when Ratchet informed me I needed an alternate form for protection and 'decency' sake. _

_Hmm, is it me, or am I just slow in taking everything in?_

_Yeah, I was naked. Not that...I knew if I was flashing them in multiple different ways, or not, but hell Ratchet! You'd think he would have told me that _first_! _

_Sunstreaker, I would have expected to remain quiet. That was another level to his more complex character. He was broody to most, loathed the oiliness and messiness of humans -Was it bad I had like a thousand prank ideas from that alone?- and he was a prankster to the bots. More than that, he could be _quite_ perverted, when given the chance._

_At least, I was guessing as much._

_But I was baaaarrreeee. Not a scrap of clothing or armor or anything -Can you tell I'm kind of stuck on that part? So...can you really blame me for not wanting to leave the med bay?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

"No."

"Isabella-"

"Nah-uh."

"It's just down the-"

"No bloody way!"

"Would you let me fin-"

"Nope."

Rika looked for all the world like she was about to have an aneurism, laughing her ass off in the crook of Jazz's arm. She snorted and giggled and coughed, and curled up, crying with tears of laughter. The look _might_ have set me off, too, if I wasn't too busy crouching on the far side of the medical berth. The only thing between myself and Ratchet.

"I merely-"

"Pervert!"

"I was just trying to-"

"No!"

Don't we just get along famously? I was actually enjoying the banter, and the ever more and more annoyed look Ratchet was dawning. That is, until he grabbed a welder from a nearby table and hoisted it threateningly. _Then_, the door to the med bay opened and Optimus Prime himself walked in.

He took one look at us, and narrowed his optics at Ratchet. "Ratchet! Have we not discussed this?" His optics darted pointedly towards Rika and Jazz, both alf behind me. "Not only do you put those two in danger if you throw that, but we do not harm femmes!" Crossing his arms over his chest, he vented. "What is _wrong_ with you?"

The look on Ratchet's face -and the movie one reminder of Ironhide's gung-ho-ness- _did_ set me off, and I could have keeled over dead from hilarity right then and there as his jaw dropped and his optics widened. The look of utter horror on the nedic's face, even as he let the welder drop limply -hopefully they had room on the budget for a replacement- caused me to laugh even harder.

Behind me, Rika was gasping for air and moaning in pain, even as she continued to laugh her ass off, which of course made it all the worse for me. My legs were already shaky, but they gave out under me, and I let my head hit the berth with a tiny clang as I laughed, breathlessly.

"Apparently, I missed something." The tone in Optimus' voice had changed, the deep resonating growing almost softer. "Did I misjudge the scene?"

"No, I'm afraid you called it as you saw it." Ratchet vented noisily. "The femme aggravated me, and I lost focus."

Now I lifted my head, letting my chin rest on the berth between my hands, and looking up at Ratchet. "It was just a welder. If I was still human, I'd be worried, but that couldn't do _that_ much damage to me, could it?" Why, again, was I standing up for Ratchet? I think he felt the same, because he looked at me with open confusion. I shrugged. "Hey, nothing against you. I was being a pain for laughs, but I'm _still_ not leaving this med bay."

"I do not understand." It was Optimus' voice and I looked over at him. "Did you not request to speak with me? Bumblebee will be arriving shortly with his charges, and we assumed you would wish to speak privately."

"Oh, I do. I'm just not giving everyone on the base a show while I'm at it." Rika snorted, the sound almost painful, and I listened to her gasping for air as her laughter faded. When Optimus frowned in confusion, the look making him seem impossibly young and naive, I shook my head. "I'm kinda, sorta, completely and utterly naked, here, in case you haven't noticed." I glanced down at my body, and back up, watching as he did he same.

He didn't look the least bit bothered, and I wasn't sure whether to feel relaxed, or insulted. Did I come across as an 'adolescent' to him, too? "You do require armor, yes, but while you are indeed naked by Autobot standards, you are not showing anything indecent. Your spark is covered yet by a protective cover, as is your sparkling chamber."

I felt myself heat. _Is he saying what I think he's saying?_ I shook my head again. "Ok, that's a little helpful, but I don't see why they can't just bring in an alternate form for me? The room and the door are big enough."

"We have only jut begun to gather necessary alternate forms, and we do not yet know if we have one that will fit your body's specifications. If we do not, we can at least narrow the field and request more forms that are better likely to fit. It would cause a lot less trouble, if you were to willingly come down to the main hangar to choose your form."

"Except then I have to walk over and around humans!" I shuddered abruptly at the whine. "Oh jeez, I just channeled Sunstreaker."

"You will have to learn eventually." Ratchet was holding a large mess, and it took me a moment to realize it was the damaged welder. He looked it over, before shaking his head and moving it to a large, empty bench.

"Ugh, but does it have to be _now_?" Taking a breath, I shifted my gaze to the big bot. "I don't suppose Ratchet can see Bumblebee and Sam in the main hangar, and we can talk here, can we?"

Optimus merely looked over at Ratchet, who growled darkly. "I would not anger the medic anymore than you already have." The tone in his voice was amused, and he chuckled slightly. "And if we were to meet here, you would not get an alternate form, and would have to remain 'naked'."

"Nah, I'm sure someone would take pity and bring some cars." Optimus smiled, his optics brightening, and I raised an eyebrow. "Unless you Autobots are a bunch of closet perverts like Dr. Minty, here."

"Dr...Minty?"

Again, Ratchet growled. "A new term the femme has decided to start calling me. Apparently I am to choose a new form some time in the next few years that seems to resemble a human breath mint." His dry tone caused me to crack up again, and even Optimus smiled. "However, _that_ is not our main concern right now."

"Yeah, yeah, you just wanna stare at my ass." It was a grumble, but I couldn't help the way my lips trembled as I said it.

Optimus actually chuckled. "You are...very refreshing, young one." He admitted quietly, walking over to me. I could still feel the ground shake a little under each step, but it was like he'd learned to step gently, because it wasn't shaking as bad as it was last time we met, and he walked anywhere. "Let us go get you an alternate form."

He held out his hand to me, and I reached up, taking it. Even as he pulled me to my feet, I tried not to feel awkward. After all, apparently their version of naked was different from their own. My 'private' areas were covered, apparently, so I didn't need to worry. I stood shakily, in front of him, and he scanned me once again.

"You are small." He tilted his head a little, looking almost startled.

"You're like thirty fricken feet tall." I snorted and rolled my eyes. "You're just too big." Rika choked on her laugh, even as Optimus chuckled and shook his head, and I couldn't help but giggle, even as I looked back at her. "Not what I meant, perv." She had to bury her face in Jazz's arm, and I sobered, looking at his still form.

Part of me wondered if he was just...sleeping, or if he was somehow stuck in that 'realm' once again, pulling massive donuts with his alt form. I shook it off though. It was comforting to know he'd be waking up soon.

"Did you wish to bring Rika with you?"

I looked to Rika. "I dunno, she looks comfy as hell on Jazz's arm." With a giggle, she looked up at me. "Wanna stay here while I have a talk with Optimus?"

She looked between us, before looking down at Jazz's arm. I'd told her about him, about his alternate form, his easy going, fun personality and his heroic acts that helped the Autobots save the world. "I'd like to see if Ratchet needs any help with Jazz." Her voice was soft, but she smirked wryly. "Besides, if it's an important discussion, you probably don't need me butting in with endless questions."

I gave her a look, but nodded. She was humbled by what Jazz had done, so I let her stay. "Okay then." I turned back to Optimus and nodded at him.

He led the way out of the med bay, and it was slow going. The halls seemed oddly even more busy than usual. We were just heading to the main hangar, as that was more or less it for the Autobot base, but for the med bay, and I still had to play clumsy hop scotch over the humans as we went.

By the time we made it to the main hangar, I was worely tempted to beg Optimus to carry me, humiliating or not. At least the humans knew to get out of the way. Fast. And yeah, I was more than aware I was already separating myself from them. I was no longer made of flesh and bone, so _they_ were the humans. I was...Cybertronian.

The bots were in the hangar, along with a lot of their allies. Ironhide was standing in the far corner, with Will standing at his feet, looking up at him as they spoke. The weapons specialist was aloof as he gazed back down, but that didn't fool me. The fact he spoke civilly to him was a huge factor.

Ratchet and Jazz were in the med bay with Rika, hence their absense.

I was standing next to Optimus, who looked down to nod a greeting at Glenn and Epps, who were wandering by, talking about computer games and console dance games.

And finally, my first _real _sighting of Bumblebee. He sat at the other end of the room with his legs crossed, and I couldn't help but smile to see they were whole and fine. Sam sat on his leg, looking a little dazed and out of it, his hands bandaged, and the two seemed to speak, though on Bumblebee's part, it was more the usage of his radio to communicate. Mikeala wasn't with them, which was a little surprising, but I wasn't all _that_ worried. After all, they were still together in the second movie, two years from now, so they couldn't have really broken up or anything.

As if sensing my stare, the little scout glanced up. He didn't even look around, just stared right at me, tilting his head a little. He had that strange fixture on the lower half of his face, which kind of warped his mouth into an almost permanent frown, but his large blue eyes seemed to glow, oddly enough, happily. I couldn't tell how I knew, I could just tell he was happy.

Or maybe it had to do with the fact his little door wings were perked right up, along with his anntenae. I couldn't help a small 'awww' at how cute he was, especially with a human sitting on his knee.

There was another low chuckle. "Bumblebee has that effect on many human femmes. Maggie Madsen spoke to me earlier asking, and I quote 'Can I take him home?'."

I laughed. I could see it. I could believe it. And damn! Could I ever agree with the sentiment! "I know. I wanna take him home, too." I tilted my head as he seemed to regard us, bringing Sam's attention to us as well. "He's cute." The little bot ducked his head, and it hit me then that he could hear us. I warmed, but not a whole lot. I meant what I said.

I broke off from Optimus and staggered my way over to him, before awkwardly crouching. Luckily, there weren't a lot of humans here, and a lot of the space was open and clear. It was a clear open path to them. Smiling, I nodded. "Hello, Bee. I'm Bella. I know you can't, or at least _shouldn't_ talk with damaged throat cables. It's ok. You probably heard about me..." I trailed off and he nodded with a little clip of a kid going 'uh-huh'.

"Wait, but wasn't Bella a human?" Sam was frowning.

I nodded down at him. "I was, but their Gods, the ancient Primes-" _You'll meet them soon enough, probably._ "-deemed I was going to help out a lot, somehow, but to do that, I had to become Cybertronian." God I hoped I wasn't butchering the explanation. "So using the shard of the Allspark I had from my dimension, energon I accidentally swallowed when I charged at Barricade, and the radiation from the power of the shard, I was turned." I shrugged a little. "Which is pretty much why I can barely walk right now. I have to re-learn all that _fun_ stuff." The last statement was spun sarcastically, and I rolled my eyes.

He made a face, before his eyes widened in panic. "Is that gonna happen to me? I-I grabbed the Allspark! I was holding it, and I got energon all over me in the battle! A-Am I gonna become a giant a-a-alien r-r-robot, too?"

Shaking my head, I slowly lowered onto my knees, folding my hands in my lap. "No, you're gonna remain human." _I think._ "I mean, in two years, you're still human and going to attend college. Oh, avoid anyone named 'Alice', by the way." _And he'll still be with Mikeala, but I'll let him figure that out for himself._

He frowned, before shaking his own head. "This is too much." It was a weary groan, and Bumblebee shifted a little. "A couple weeks ago, I was just a normal boy. I went to school, fantasized over my arch-enemy's girlfriend, and dreamt about owning the hottest thing on four wheels."

"Now you _have_ the girl of your dreams, you're done high school, and you _have_ the hottest thing on four wheels, that just doubles into the most fantabulous giant alien robot, ever." I grinned as Sam looked up. Then I sighed. "I know it's a lot to take in, but I think, in time, you'll come to enjoy this." I tried to smile, but his doubtful look troubled me.

It kind of brought up the question. If he wanted Bee around after the first movie, what happened in the two years following that caused him to want Bee to stay away? He had high level clearance and could have found a way to keep Bee with him. What was it, specifically, that changed everything?

There was a low whistle, and I looked up at Bee, and just watched as he cared for Sam like he was a sparkling. The thought had me smiling. The youngest of the current Autobots, caring for a human who probably _could_ be a sparkling if he wanted to.

"Is-er, Bella."

Looking over my shoulder, I spotted Optimus waiting, and remembered the talk that I needed to have with him. "Oh, right." I turned back and smiled at Bee. "I just really came over here to tell you not to change. You're just _so_ cute!" I leaned out and placed an awkward, uncomfortable kiss to his forehead. Metal lips equals _not_ all that flexible. No wonder Autobots didn't know kissing, or did they?

Ugh, a thought I really didn't need to go on right now.

Then I moved to where I guessed Bee's audios would be, or where I guessed they'd be. "Oh, and if Sam _does_ meet Alice, and she ends up in your alternate form, go ahead and slam her face into the dash, and spray her with that green stuff. That was fraggin' hilarious!" I kept my voice low as I pulled back, watching as Bee cocked his head at me curiously, a hint of amusement in his optics. Then I got up, turned and stumbled back to Prime.

"Ok, let's get this over with."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Bumblebee is _the_ cutest mech ever! He warbled and whined. His doorwings fluttered and lifted or sank, whatever he was feeling. His little antennae followed suit. He had the biggest, bluest optics ever, that just _screamed_ innocence half of the time..._

_But enough about that._

_My alternate form...well...there wasn't a whole lot to choose from. They brought in the Ferrari model Sunstreaker had taken, thinking Sideswipe would want that too. I'll have to speak to Optimus about that, too. I had a helicopter, a jet, a bus, a semi, a Dodge Laramie Duallie, a GMC Topkick... Basically, every form of the current Autobots was there, with a few extras. The only one that caught my eye was the adorable little red Porsche Carrara GT._

_It was sleek, it was sexy, and until that moment, I ever thought there'd be a better form for Sideswipe than the 2009 Stingray Corvette. Since _that_ was taken, however, I happily chose the Porsche. After all, if Sunstreaker could be flashy, why couldn't I?_

_Now...to figure out how to change._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : August 15, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	27. Informed

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I am eventually going to start putting in time jumps, just because I can't see myself doing multiple chapters a day, for 2 freakin' years. If I did that, this story would have over 1,000 chapters before I even got to the second movie! D: Then again, I might not do the 'second movie'. ;)

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Out of all the bots, Optimus was one of my top favorites for his more gentle nature. Despite being a war-hardened fighter, he still had a very soft, compassionate demeanor around other people, even the bots that annoy him. He can smile, laugh, and even joke. At least, that's what I read, and liked to believe._

_With what I wanted to talk about, Sunstreaker was a bad option simply because he'd tell me to shut my mouth before I even got a question out, and would probably tune me out in seconds. Or bitch me out. Or walk away. Or just interrupt me every chance he got. Or ignore anything not remotely related to Sideswipe and knock me off track with near constant questions._

_Ratchet...might have been a better choice, except I felt he'd more likely demand every molecule of information I held, whether I was comfortable with it, or not. Ironhide wouldn't be any different, except for the fact he'd probably literally shoot me if I didn't answer._

_Bumblebee couldn't talk, and I didn't want to make him use his radio any more than necessary. Jazz was offline, and even if he was online, would probably end up the center of Ratchet's attentions for a long, _long_ time._

_So that left Optimus. The quietest, most patient bot. The one I felt would most likely give me the advice I needed, without the constant interruptions, demands and/or threats._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

"You wished to speak to me?"

After I'd figured out the transforming thing, which was startlingly easy, we'd left the hangar. I checked out my new red paint job, enjoying the deep cherry color. My body either 'matured' more, or it changed with the transformation as well, because I was now topping at about sixteen and a half feet, according to the boss bot, and I was curvier. That last part I figured out on my own.

The day Optimus Prime told me I was 'curvy' was the day I volunteered to be _Simmons' _guardian. Or better yet, Galloway's.

We had walked across the base and beyond, my first time out of the base since my arrival. We moved deep into the forests, and Optimus had to hold my hand to steady me as we picked our way through the dense forest. A lot of the trees here were ten feet or higher, leaving them around our waists. It was a little odd, holding boss bot's hand, but he was a surprising gentleman about it, which made it easier.

Finally, he stopped at the edge of a large mountain range, quite a distance away. Considering he didn't have an office at the moment, I guessed this would do.

"I'm worried." I blurted the words out, without really thinking. Then I had to shake my head. "I mean, about everything. The movie. I'm supposed to change something, but I don't know what. Sam..." I glanced up to see I had Optimus' undivided attention. "Sam had to die in the second movie, to help save the world." His optics widened as I said the words, and I quickly shook my head. "No, no! He came back! I... It's just... He had to die. It was apparently his 'destiny'. I don't want him to, but I'm worried that if I interfere, someone else might be hurt even worse, or our side might lose the war."

"Hmm... I can see why you would be worried."

"The thing is, he's also in danger from the Decepticons." His optics narrowed now. "They're going to send a pretender to his college in two years time. He's going to leave Bee behind, because he wants a 'normal' life." I could see in his optics that Optimus somehow understood that. "But it's not going to matter."

"If he wishes a normal life, we can at least attempt to honor that."

"Except that I don't think it's possible." Frowning, I sighed and moved awkwardly, managing to sit cross legged. "He's more or less neck deep in it now. The Decepticons are either gonna hold a grudge and hunt him, or they're gonna see him as a way to get to you guys. Either way..."

"You wished to speak to me about Sam's life? I would think this a conversation better had with him." Optimus was tilting his head a little, looking confused. His red and blue armor really seemed to shine outside, and I couldn't help the tiny smile as I remembered when I washed him. "What?"

Shaking my head, I giggled a little, before sobering. "No. Actually what I wanted to talk to you about is...a lot more sensitive, and I really think you're the _only_ one classified to give me advice on it." I looked him in the optics. "As the last living Prime, the Fallen not counted."

His optics flashed, and he opened his mouth, but then he seemed to think better of it, and nodded only.

"The second movie is set in two years. I'm not sure what exactly is key information and what isn't. I'm pretty sure certain things might _need_ to happen, but others don't. I..." I hesitated as Optimus crouched in front of me. "I don't know what to say, how to explain it. I don't know what to say about the movie, that I haven't already, that won't screw things up. I mean, I'm afraid of slipping up in a casual conversation. What information might only make things worse, if we try to avoid it."

"Tell me about the things you _know_ are safe to speak of." He advised quietly.

I nodded. "The femmes, Chromia, Arcee and Flareup, are coming to Earth." His optics seemed to brighten ever so slightly. "They will be a part of the final battle in Egypt in two years time, and at least two of them will either be mortally wounded or killed. I don't think that's necessary, but I'm not sure how to avoid it."

He hummed softly, and I sighed. "Then there's your death." I didn't think it was possible for Optimus to jump the way he did, but...he did. He went rigid, his optics narrowing. "You died at Megatron's hands. At the Fallen's command. He and at least two other Decepticons ambushed you when you were alone, trying to protect Sam, and while you were distracted, Megatron stabbed you in the back. Literally." With everything swirling around in my head, I couldn't remember if I'd told him that or not, already.

"Megatron is offline."

"I _know_ he is." I once again locked eyes on him, frowning. "_Now_. However, Soundwave's arrival will lead the Decepticons to finding out about the shard of the Allspark you have, as well as Megatron's location. Both are under the 'protection'-" I used quotes because really... Did humans think they could stop super smart _giant_ alien robots from getting what they wanted? Alone, at that? "-of the human miltary and navy, and the Decepticons manage to get both."

"That is troubling news. Is that something you believe is 'meant' to happen?"

"Maybe. Because someone's gotta revive Megatron for him to stab you and kill you. And you need to be dead for Sam to meet the Primes. And _he_ needs to die for _that_, and _that_ I don't want to happen." I paused then. "Frag it, I don't want _anyone_ to die!"

I kept getting flashback to Optimus' death. He was _so_ concerned with Sam's safety, he couldn't protect himself right, and died for it. He cared _that_ much about _one_ of our kind. It was a humbling thought. And actually kind of scary.

Optimus sighed. "If it is destiny-"

"Frag destiny! We can make a new destiny!" I was a firm believer that destiny was the decisions you made in life, and the consequences of those decisions. "I just..." Now I paused. "I don't know if Sam is supposed to be infected with Allspark radiation, like he does in the second movie. I don't know how it effects him after the movie ends, and everyone seems to be okay. I don't know if _that_ is supposed to happen. If it is..." _Maybe, just maybe, Optimus really _is_ meant to die._

"Ratchet, I'm certain, would be better suited to answer that question."

"Yeah." I snorted sarcastically. "Because he did a wonderful job explaining what the flip was happening to me." I raised a hand and pointed at Optimus. "And 'flip' is just a human term used to replace a really foul word that is usually frowned upon for humans to use, especially around kids."

He blinked as if startled by my off-topic comment, before sitting right down. "We will work this out. If I am meant to die-" Though it looked like the idea pained him. "Or that perhaps Sam is to...die..." That idea seemed even _more_ agonizing, and he shut his optics. "Then we are best not to interfere with the path the ancient Primes have left before us.

"But don't you get it, I'm _supposed_ to change it!" Shaking my head, I stood, followed by Optimus, who grabbed me as I wobbled dangerously, letting me go as I straightened.

"Perhaps. There is no way to be certain." He vented a little. "I will do as I must to protect the human race from the Decepticons. Any Autobot would."

"I know." Nodding a little, I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around his waist. He was really wide. And I mean _really_ wide. The movies didn't exaggerate the 'overly muscled' torso form they gave him, in his bipedal mode. He wasn't 'lean' by any means. He was solid, massive muscle. Well, robotic 'muscle', anyways. Sighing myself, I pressed my head to his chest, listening to the pulsing hums of his spark through his system, and feeling the warmth his body gave off. The life. Closing my eyes, I tried to ignore the urge to cry. I'd wanted to do this ever since seeing that one part in the movie.

"Bella..." His voice was soft, and I felt it as he just stood there a moment, before almost hesitantly wrapping his arms around me. "Is this what humans refer to as 'hugging'? A sentiment to show affection, and either seek or give comfort?"

I couldn't help but laugh. I actually _forgot_ they were still new to our culture. "Yes, it is."

"I see." He tightened his hold on me, showing me only a fraction of the strength those massive arms were capable of. His gentleness, despite his size and composition, really did shock me. "I can understand your hesitation in allowing me to die, if that _is_ necessary. I believe I feel the same about the possibility of Sam's offlining. Or that of any of our new friends."

"But it might be fate, right?" I looked up at him, resting my chin on his chest, and watched as he nodded, peering down at me from over the edge of his massive chest. Seeing the look, I couldn't help the snort of amusement, as I tried to imagine Sideswipe giving the same look. _Dolly Parton, eat your heart out._ The idea had me laughing, and the confused look as Prime tilted his head, even more so. "I'm sorry. I just had a random thought." I shook my head, and sighed, the amusement actually sticking around this time. _Hey Sides, when was the last time you saw your feet?_

I made a mental list of all the comments I could make, vowing to find him and make them at some point, before straightening again, almost reluctantly pulling out of Optimus' embrace.

"Do you feel better?"

I nodded and smiled.

He vented. "Good, because now it is I who requires your assistance."

"Oh?"

"Although I fear my topic is only marginally less important than yours." Optimus seemed to smile ever so slightly. "I am curious as to whom are coming, as far as the Autobots are concerned, and anything you may know on the Decepticons. As well as any information on alternate forms we may need to gather for the new arrivals. I am referring to any other bots you may not have already mentioned. You said something about rumors of a third film?"

"Oh." I blinked, and nodded. "Well, obviously the femmes are coming, and they all took motorcycle forms. Unfortunately, I don't know the make or model." I grimaced, and he nodded encouragingly. "Sideswipe, and he'll be a silver 2009 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray. Since it's only 2007, the car won't be out yet, so I wouldn't look for it." He nodded again. "Skids will be a green Chevrolet Beat and Mudflap a red Chevrolet Trax. Finally, Jolt is going to be a blue Chevrolet Volt." _Damn, they were right. Transformers is mostly Chevy Autobots._

"I see. I will have these alternate modes brought to the base then, and if they are not already in existence, I will inform our human allies to keep searching for them."

He tilted his head ever so slightly when I hesitated, clearly noting it. "Those are the bots coming in the next two years. There are more coming after, I would guess...in another two year span. A red Ferrari 458 Italia. I don't know the year, or who the bot is that takes it. A modified blue Mercedes E-Class. An aerial bot known as Silverbolt, and another one no one knows anything about. I _was_ guessing Sunstreaker was going to be the Ferrari, because a lot of fanfiction writers usually pegged him as a Ferrari, Corvette, or Lamborghini. Oh, you might want to get a red and a yellow Lamborghini. The _original_ Sunstreaker and Sideswipe were Lambos, so they might choose to change their forms."

Then an idea hit me. "Oh, but you won't be able to get a lot of those forms yet, because those are vehicles that haven't come out yet. I guess you'll just need to keep an eye-err, optic out." Then I thought. "Well, their forms changed a lot in the different cartoons and mangas. There are other forms you might want to pick. If the bots weren't in the movie, or are like Sunstreaker and show up later, they might chose another form." I began to list off whatever forms I could think of, from when I'd wikipedia'd certain bots and read the different alternate modes they could take.

Optimus was beginning to look a little dazed, if not outright lost.

"You'll also want to bring in a semi trailer, the cargo box style." Was I rambling? I was giving him the information he'd want, wasn't I? "And maybe a green and yellow medical Hummer." I paused, grinning. "You'll find Dr. Minty's new alternate form somewhere in Chicago, I think."

He nodded, optics _really_ dim.

"Optimus?" He blinked, focusing, and I frowned. "Are you okay?"

"I am simply recording and filing away the information, as well as searching your worldwide web for term explanations I do not understand."

"Sorry! I keep forgetting you don't know a lot of our terms."

"Yet it takes a matter of seconds to learn them." He reassured me with a soft gaze and a smile. "Please continue. This is information I believe will come in handy."

I nodded a little. "Well... I _think_ that's it for the Autobots, except..." I trailed off, and his optics brightened. Sighing, I shook my head. "I don't know how or when they arrive. Or, for that matter, if they aren't already on Earth and like Sunstreaker, just unable to find you guys."

"If they are, we will find them. We have many new allies, and are progressing at a remarkable speed, setting up a secure base." He hummed slightly. "And I have reconsidered giving the humans control over our shard of the Allspark, for everyone's safety."

"Ok... Well, the main Decepticon you need to keep an, um, optic out for is Soundwave. I don't know when he arrives in Earth's orbit, but he hacks into a sattelite there, and manages to get access to even the most secure transmissions. That's how he finds out about the Allspark shard and Megatron's body. Then there's Sideways who will appear somewhere in Shanghai, a lot later, but Sides takes him out. Um...other than that, there are going to be _way_ too many Decepticons at the battle in Egypt. They come in as a mass wave." I thought hard.

"Can we defeat them?"

"Not all of them, I don't think, but when you were revived in the movie, you had Jetfire's parts, and the power boost helped you to defeat the Fallen, which caused them all to retreat, including Megatron and Starscream."

"Jetfire..." He seemed to pause, optics going dim again. "There is very little knowledge of him, but if I remember correctly, he is a Decepticon, is he not? Why would I have his parts?"

"Because he defected." Now the large bot blinked in surprise. "He's actually offline right now. I don't know if he's in um... Oh damn, what did Ratchet call it?" I tried to snap my fingers, but ended up glaring at them when the smooth leather-like surface refused to make a sound. Shaking my head, I tried to focus. "Oh! Stasis Lock? Sam and the other humans used the second shard to bring him to life." As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I wanted to take them back more than anything else in the world. We hadn't broached this subject completely, but now...

I mean, Sam wasn't destined to find it for two years, and I doubt the Autobots thought to scan for it, so I had a good feeling that with everything going on, it was still nestled somewhere on his jersey.

Optimus straightened, all of a sudden on high alert. "What is this? A second shard?"

That only confirmed that they didn't know, and I barely kept from cringing.

_Well shit! Now what do I do?_ "Uh, yeah? But, I... I don't know if you finding it _now_ is a good thing. I keep thinking Sam might need..." Something snapped in me then. If I didn't tell them, I'd be walking on egg shells until it all happened, or slipping up like I just did. Besides, how could we change things, if they didn't know _what_ to change? "Ok, you know what? Screw it." I growled a little and shook my head. If it was destiny, it would happen another way. "Sam has a shard of the Allspark and doesn't even know it. It's stuck on the jersey he wore in Mission City, and in the movie, he was packing the shirt up when it fell off. He was infected when he reached down to touch it, and it zapped him. It won't change him, but it'll give him the knowledge of the Allspark, and I don't think the seizures he had were a good thing, and it'll make the Decepticons target him even more."

There was a grumble, and I looked up sharply to see Optimus' optics dim and his head turned towards the base. It didn't take a genious to know he was talking to the others, maybe Bumblebee directly, about what I was saying. They would take that shard now, just like I suspected, but I didn't care anymore. I didn't want anyone to die, and if this was a way to see to it...

He turned back to me with a sigh, his expression hard. "I'm afraid we need to cut this conversation short. I would like to know Jetfire's exact location, but I need to see to putting together a team to locate the shard, as well as a recovery team for Jetfire himself. If he truly is a defector, his assistance is welcome, and I am truly grateful for your taking the time to talk to me."

I gave him a long look, before sighing and taking the hand he held out to me. It was nice to see _he_, at least, trusted me. Maybe to a fault, but when I knew what I knew, maybe it helped. I mean, I knew things not even Decepticons could, so maybe he was listening to me because he truly thought I spoke to the Primes. He thought I was a friend. And I am.

Now, I just had to convince the others of that.

"I just hope it helps, and doesn't make things worse."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_The entire base was in an uproar within the hour. Ratchet, Bumblebee, Optimus and Ironhide left the base with Sam, Lennox, Epps and a handful of troops. They would split into two teams, with Optimus and Ironhide heading to the museum for Jetfire, and the others going, I guessed, to Sam's place._

_That left Rika in the crook of Jazz's arm, where apparently Ratchet had provided her a blanket and pillow and she was more than comfortable. I just _knew_ she was going to like him, when he finally woke up. Sunstreaker was...somewhere on the base. I was admittedly worried when I couldn't easily find him. And myself..._

_Considering I was just learning to walk, transforming into my own body was new to me. Oh, and I could do that, too. I was like a triple changer or something. I could transform down into my own body, something about subspacing technology and nanites and all kinds of scientific Greek. I could take on my bipedal mode, or a Porsche._

_Rika squealed like a rabid fangirl at my Porsche mode, just like I expected her to._

_My point... I had God-only-knew how much time to spare, and nothing to do. I was torn between sleeping it away, or trying to hunt down Sunstreaker._

_And it didn't help soldiers glared at me, or 'escorted' me around the base, whether I liked it or not. Even if one or two of the Autobots seemed to trust me, it was clear most of the humans didn't._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : August 15, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	28. Sam's Happy Time

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Author's Note** : Despite the chapter title, this is NOT a chapter dedicated to Sam and his, erm, 'alone time'.

Just a little notice, but when I hit the last (currently) finished chapter, updates will probably slow. I'm not writing as much right now, although I _am_ still writing on this story. Otherwise, it's going to take a while to hit that point, so please sit back and enjoy the ride! *Hands out cookies and drinks*

...It's going to be a bumpy one...

* * *

_Dear Diary, _

_Everyone was gone. The only bot really left at base was Sunstreaker. Well, the only _online_ bot, who wasn't born a human being, anyways. With most of the bigger, more frightening bots either hidden somewhere or not present, a lot of the newer human soldiers changed towards us a lot._

_Rika, luckily, didn't notice. She'd been up all night with me, so when I checked on her, she was sleeping soundly on Jazz's arm, curled up like a hairless kitten._

_If he'd been around for it, Sunstreaker wouldn't even care. He'd snarl at the humans, or scare the hell out of them in one way or another, but otherwise, it wouldn't phase him._

_Me, on the other hand...?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

"Hey look. Isn't that the robot that used to be human? I still say they're gonna turn us all into freakish monsters like her."

I tried not to let it show just how much the idea hurt me. I tried not to show I could hear every word, but some part of me wondered if they didn't know. If somehow, they couldn't just sense that I could hear them, and that their words were hurting me a lot.

"What a freak. If they really cared for humans, why didn't they just put her out of her misery, instead of letting her transform? She's useless to them like this. Look at her! She can't even_ walk_ right!"

"I know, right?"

I closed my eyes and looked out towards the docks. This wasn't how the soldiers were _supposed _to act, but then again, I wasn't that naive that I thought for a moment all the soldiers here would just up and suddenly accept the bots. On another note, I couldn't shake their words, as much as I tried. Deep down, I knew they were right. It was only a matter of time before my useful information ran out, and then what? What good would I be to them? Me, who couldn't even run, let alone wield a weapon for fight?

"Now she's a monster, just like them."

"Nah, she's worse than them. They know what they are, and all that jazz. She's clueless. She'll probably try to hug her 'friend'-" No, I didn't miss the verbal air quotes. "And crush the poor girl."

"In other words, she's a threat."

I started walking. It was uneven, unbalanced, but I felt sure enough now that I no longer feared falling over. I spotted a yellow Ferrari in the distance, doing laps, and my eyes burned hotly as I wandered towards it. _They're right. In every sense of the word._ Every time I felt a tear slip down my cheek, I wiped at it, struggled with all I had not to break down and cry in front of them.

And I sure as hell didn't want to break down in front of Sunstreaker. He'd just laugh at me.

I wandered over. I didn't know if he could see or hear me approaching, but I guess he did, because as I hit the edge of the base where a rough, make-shift race track had been set up, he transformed quickly, skidding to a stop in front of me with his optics narrowed.

"You've been leaking. Don't tell me this is still about earlier. If I'd damaged you, Ratchet would have offlined me the moment he noticed the damage." His tone was dark, as was his expression. He stood tall, easily towering over me, and folded his arms over his chest. That didn't mean he didn't glance at my arms, though.

"What? Oh, no." I shook my head and wiped at my face even more. "That's not it. That was my fault. I didn't realize just how much you hate being called...that." I paused, nearly slipping up again. "I mean, I know it _bothers_ you, I just never realized it went beyond annoyance."

He seemed to stare at me an alarmingly long moment, his optics raking over my body. "It usually doesn't." He vented sharply, optics darting past me momentarily.

"It's just because it was _me_ that said it, right?" With the soldier's words running through my brand new processor, I once again began to wonder if I was wrong. Maybe it wasn't that it reminded him of Sideswipe. Maybe it _was_ because it was me, the resident freak, who called him that. I felt like an outsider. Like a nerd at school, trying desperately to fit in with the popular kids.

His optics snapped back to me. "And that makes you think that?" Funny how quickly he could switch emotions. He could go from pained to pissed faster than it takes me to blink.

"The reason I was...'leaking'." I shrugged a little, letting more tears fall, and turned away. I could have made a comment about the remark, if I wasn't so distracted. "I'm a freak. I wasn't created Cybertronian, originally. I was born human. Just like the soldiers said, I should have died. I'm not even going to be useful. Once I tell everyone what I know, that's it... I'm just a...a liability." I sniffled a little, not that I needed to. My sinuses were clear, but it felt like a habit. "They think I'm a monster now. I _feel_ like a monster."

There was a deep rumble, and I turned, surprised at the way Sunstreaker was glowering. Again. But more darkly this time, like I'd personally insulted him. "You are Cybertronian. To speak like that means you are calling _us_ monsters."

"No!" I shook my head violently. "No, you don't get it! I was _born_ human! That's what I should be, right now! I'm the only one to _ever_ change species, and that just isn't normal! _I'm_ a monster! I don't know anything anymore! I was raised human, but I'm made of metal now! I can never have a normal human life. I'm Cybertronian now, but don't know a _thing_ about _being_ Cybertronian! I can't live like that, either."

"All it takes is a data pack to teach you basics, once your processor has stabilized."

"_If _it stabilizes! We don't even know if that will be possible!"

"Is it that you are troubled so much about being what you are..." He raised an optic ridge, reaching out and...surprisingly gently touching one of the trails of tears with an odd look in his optics, wiping at it slightly, before recoiling sharply. "Or that it is your former species that is giving you trouble over what you are no longer?" I lowered my head and listened to him growl. "You have a purpose to be in this form. It was no accident, no 'freak of nature'. It was meant to happen."

"Then why wasn't I created Cybertronian at birth?"

He frowned at me. "Would you have known about the movie? Recognized me on sight? Been able to help me reunite with the Autobots, if that were so?"

I froze then, feeling the cooling trails on my cheeks. He was right, too. If I hadn't been born human, I wouldn't know anything I knew now. "But if that's the case, why change me?" I shook my head. "My knowledge could still have been useful, keeping me human."

He snarled then, startling me. "Why do you ask me? I am not Optimus Prime, or Ratchet. Why, for that matter, are you here? I would have thought my earlier actions would have changed your mind about me." His look hardened again, and he stepped back, turning away.

_How? You're still an Autobot._ "Because I don't blame you." I looked up at him, watching as he turned back and stared blankly at me. "I know you miss him, and every time I call you...that, it reminds you of him, for one thing. I don't blame you for reacting like that." Shifting a little, I sighed and looked out over the forest. "Did you know people in my realm always theorized it was physically agonizing for you to be separated from your brother like this? A lot of them seem to think it really _hurts_ you, and I believe that."

Then again, it was also only theory. Not fact. I had no way of knowing for sure. I looked at him almost hesitantly. "Am I wrong?"

He blinked, then flinched, lowering his head. "No." His voice was surprisingly soft. "You are right. It is...hard on my spark to be separated from my twin for so long. The longer it lasts, the more dangerous the convulsions."

"Convulsions?" I tilted my head a little, and mentally cursed as Sunstreaker stiffened immediately.

"It is not your concern." His voice and expression had hardened to ice once again. He looked out over the forest. "And it does not matter. If you don't have any need for me-"

"I just...wanted to get away from the whispers, and to apologize for hurting you."

He hissed, spinning back towards me sharply. "Hurting _me_? In case your processor is malfunctioning, you didn't grip _me_ painfully." I didn't miss the way his optics shot to my arms, again.

"No, but I used _his_ nickname for you." It was a simple, innocent answer, but I watched as he jerked, as though punched. "I'm sorry."

He growled. "What is this about whispers you wished to get away from?"

I recognized the change in topic, the easy way out, and latched on to it. Sunstreaker wasn't one for apologies, either given or received. "The soldiers. They're...talking about me...being a freak." The burning was back in my eyes. "It made me feel unwelcome. Like some kind of monster." _It made me feel like...I kinda already felt, and just didn't wanna admit._

He rolled his optics. The idea clearly didn't bother him in the slightest. "They speak of us all like that."

"But I'm not you." He looked at me, and I tried to get him to understand. "I feel the same way. I felt it already, their whispers just make it so much worse! I'm not you, that I can just tune it out, or ignore it. I'm not cocky or confident enough in myself, that I know they're wrong."

He stayed silent for a bit, before his optics narrowed. "And what do you want me to do about it? I'm not allowed to harm squishies, remember?"

The laugh was soft, pained. "Sometimes I wanna say screw that rule." I didn't mean it. Not really. That didn't mean I wasn't fantasizing about Sunstreaker drop kicking those whispering soldiers all the way back to their recruitment offices. Shaking my head, I sighed. I still hurt, and this talk wasn't doing a whole lot to comfort me, but then again... This was Sunstreaker. I should have known better. "I just...wanted to be distracted."

He was facing away from me, arms folded over his chest. I stared at him a long moment, really amazed that I was so much bigger than I was, and yet...he still dwarfed me. He was tall, strong, wide, sturdy. I felt weak in comparison. Then he transformed down, the change almost smooth and graceful in a way only the Lambo twins could make it.

"Can you transform?"

I transformed down into my human form. Transforming was one of the first things I learned to do, after scanning my alternate form. It would be necessary. It was the easiest for me, to take my human form, and I stood awkardly in front of Sunstreaker. With a rev of his engine, his driver side door popped open, and I took the invitation without it really needing to be said, hopping into the seat carefully, shaking out any sand from my shoes before setting my feet on the map.

He hummed quietly, and the door shut. Then the belt slid down across me. "Ignore those humans, femme. You are not one of them any longer." He started off down the track, moving slowly, but gaining speed as he went, yet I never once felt the slightest bump. "You are one of us now. With time and training, you _will_ be better than them, and their words will mean nothing."

I nodded a little. "It just hurts." I had to think a moment, before frowning. "Maybe it hurts even more, because I know that these are people who actually fight along side the Autobots. They're supposed to be allies."

"They do not _sound_ like allies."

"I know. That's what gets me. Then again, this is all new, for everyone. It's not like we can just expect everyone to fall head over heels and adore the bots on first sight." I shook my head again, leaning it back against the warm headrest. The seat shifted under me ever so slightly, and I sagged back even more, finding myself surprisingly comfortable. "Thanks, Sunstreaker."

There was no response.

The car sped off around the track, and I watched the scenery pass. He didn't go in circles, as the track was formed. He found and created paths along the beach, through the wider open parts of the fields and forests, dodging mud puddles, ignoring sandy hills, and creating a wide berth around the denser forests. The ride was exciting enough that I could watch the plants we passed with fascination at how smooth his moves were, but quiet enough, I allowed myself a chance to relax.

Then I heard the engine rev, and the Ferrari spun in place in the middle of a field, B-lining it back to the base. "Wow! Geez, there's the fire?"

"There is no 'fire', but the others are returning. Bumblebee is docking with Sam, Mikeala and Ratchet as we speak, and Ratchet is curious to your status."

"But I'm ok. I don't need to go back." I frowned, feeling a little put out that he was returning me to base so quickly. "Unless you just want me out of you. You could have just asked."

The belt tightened. "It is nothing of the sort." Though the tone and blunt words were Sunstreaker's style, the actual _statement_ caught me off guard. I tried not to let it show. "Ratchet wishes to scan your energy signal and compare it to that of the Allspark. Medical curiosity and all that, and I have had yet to speak with Bumblebee."

"Oh... You do realize he's got a squishy with him, right? The slimy, bloody kind?" I found myself looking around his interior, giggling as his seat squirmed underneath me, and the entire car shuddered with a metallic 'Ewwwwwww'.

"Then I suppose you will simply have to wash and wax me." There was something in his voice, and my giggles increased as the car visibly sped up, heading for the base.

**(Medical Bay)**

"W-Weren't you just a giant robot?"

I sat in Sunstreaker's hand, not daring to ask why he decided to pick me up. I didn't want to jinx the nicer mood he was in, or cause him to think twice and drop me from where I was. Sitting in front of the others, I watched as Bumblebee leaned in, whirling and clicking quietly with a curious look, and Sam followed his lead.

"I'm kind of an...odd triple-changer." Ratchet's head shot to me and I raised an eyebrow. "Transformers know-it-all, remember?" _Well, not really, but next to the other humans they're dealing with..._ My tone was dry, almost annoyed, and I tried to stamp down on the emotion before I snapped at the wrong person.

"Oh." Sam blinked. "Uh, a-anyways, I heard you're the one who knew I had a shard of the, uh, Allspark?" I nodded and he seemed to regard me some more. "Just how much about my home life do you know?" There it was, ladies and gentlemen, the question of the decade.

I thought for a moment, before grinning sharply, and watching as the mechs and human all leaned away from me. Well, but for Sunny, who made an odd noise as he peered down at me. "Well... I know your mother likes to refer to your 'alone time' as 'Sam's happy time'." His face went white, then the deepest shade of red ever. "Geez Sam, I think you're actually _inventing_ a new shade of red. C'mon, I'm not the first girl to hear it. Millions of people in my world know about it too." His face went even redder, and his eyes widened to the point I was almost afraid they were going to fall out of his head.

Bumblebee was staring down at the boy with worried and amused optics. He'd been on Earth long enough to learn a lot, and this... He seemed to know what it meant, if the way his door wings buzzed and shivered were any indication.

"Respiratory rate has increased dramatically." Ratchet murmured quietly. "Facial plates have turned an alarming shade of red. Sam, are you in physical distress?" He leaned down, tilting his head, and undoubtedly scanning the poor boy.

"Let's not get into how _Mikeala_ was there for it." Sam made an odd choked sound. "Or the 'Can I ride you home' line, in Bumblebee." Bee choked on a laugh, his wings bouncing behind him, and Sam fell face down on the padded hand that was holding him, with a loud groan of horror.

"Enough!"

"And when Ratchet popped in with this 'pheremone' readings, right in front of her."

"Okay, okay! I'm sorry I asked!" He groaned again, swatting almost angrily at the hand that was poking at him by this point. "And I'm not having a heart attack or anything. Though... I feel like I'm gonna die of embarrassment."

Immediately, Ratchet plucked him out of Bumblebee's grasp, the little mech looking on in worry, and began checking him over in earnest. "I do not know how embarrassment can offline an organic, but I will not allow it to happen!" He declared darkly, almost glaring.

I snickered, causing Ratchet to look at me sharply. "It's a human turn of phrase." I explained, the smile refusing to leave my face. "It just more or less means he's _really_ embarrassed, not that he'll actually _die_ from it."

"Dude, what was this director guy thinking?" Sam gave me a horrified look.

_That's what a lot of people would like to know. _I shook my head. "Actually, those were just the really embarrassing moments. In the first movie, it just focused on the fact you were a recent highschool graduate, and your father was taking you out to get a car. He stopped by the Porsche dealer-" I paused, realizing I'd taken on the form of his dream car, without even realizing it, before shaking my head. "As a cruel joke. Then he took you to Bobby Bolivia, and apparently neither of you spotted the driverless Camaro pulling in behind you."

Bee whistled lowly and his head sank, but there was no mistaking the way his door wings trembled, or his antennae perked. Yeah, he wasn't sorry. Not one bit.

Sam patted him on the hand, almost absently.

"Then it went on about you going to the lake, telling Trent off, calling Miles out for embarrassing you by climbing a tree and hanging upside down in it. Then you found Mikeala without a ride and gave her a ride home, only stopping when Bee's 'engine stalled'." Sam gave the little bot a half-hearted dirty look for that.

"So it was mostly about my life?"

"Not the more private parts, really, but yeah. I think I nearly keeled over in laughter when Optimus Prime stepped on the bird bath with his infamous 'Oops. My bad.' line. Seriously, if there's a line giant, almost regal, alien robots should _not_ say..."

"Tell me about it." He nodded a little, with a hint of a smile, before turning sober once again. "And this second movie?"

"You were going to college." I frowned now, really staring at him, and he seemed to flinch. "You were leaving the Autobots to go to college, trying for a normal life." I left out the part about leaving Bumblebee behind, because I just couldn't do that to the little mech. "But there was a Decepticon pretender there, by the name of Alice."

"Pretender?"

"A pretender is a smaller form of Decepticon, with the ability to adapt their outer surface to their surroundings, to blend in. They 'pretend' to be a normal part of it, in order to infiltrate perfectly. They are the top Decepticon spies, and far more deadly than the larger mechs, simply because of their ability to blend in to their surroundings." Ratchet informed Sam, eyeing the tiny Allspark shard he held.

"Oh."

"Yeah." I nodded. "You were infected with the Allspark radiation when you touched the shard, in the movie, and you kept having near seizures, where you'd see bits of information. In fact, you read an entire college book on Astrology in a matter of seconds, without even realizing it, before publicly ranting about the errors of Neuton's theory, or something..." There I paused, trying to recall it, before shaking my head. "The point is, you failed to get away from them. You even ended up getting yourself, Mikeala and your room mate caught by the Decepticons. You were rescued, but... Optimus Prime offlined, err..." I was a little more used to explaining this to the bots, so I had to watch my terminology. "He died protecting you."

Sam flinched visibly, and it didn't really hit me just how harsh this information was, until it was already out. Part of me felt like I was scolding him. He seemed _so_ pumped to be a part of the Autobots' life. He even said _yes_, with a _smile_ no less, to having Bumblebee in his life.

Why would he change his mind?

"It's not that easy. Everything is different now. I can't even tell my best friend!" He groaned, shaking his head.

"Says you." He looked at me sharply, along with Ratchet, who was now full out glaring. "A lot of fanfictions theorized about you telling Miles, and him getting a guardian. I'm not saying it happens, it didn't in the second movie, set two years from now, but it _is_ a possibility. He took to it well, if I remember right, but remember, that was _just_ a theory." I didn't want them running after the boy and instantly admitting to everything, just because of my words. After all, what if I was wrong?

"It would put the young Miles in danger." Ratchet spoke gravely.

I raised an eyebrow. "As opposed to what? All it takes is a Decepticon to hack into Sam's school records, or any pictures, or online friend accounts he has, and they can put two an two together. They'll see the pictures of him with Miles. They'll automatically assume. Just because they didn't go after him in the first or second movie, doesn't mean they won't, at some point."

"The femme is right." Sunstreaker's input startled me, and it took a second to remember that I was still sitting on his palm. Or, rather, _laying._ "The Decepticons will target any squishy they believe to be even loosely connected to us. The Witwicky creators, the Lennox femme and her sparkling. This 'Miles'. They may all be in danger, simply from being related to the organic allies we've accumulated." He then growled lowly, causing Sam to lean back a little. "Yet another reason we should not have allied ourselves with them."

I patted his palm absently, both hurt by his words, and somehow knowing that this was both Sunstreaker _and_ the harsh truth. I couldn't imagine my life as normal anymore, and trust me, I _tried_. Now that I was here, even thinking about a normal life just...didn't seem normal anymore.

"Prime will sort that mess out when he returns." Ratchet vented. "I am not pleased, but you are right. They might well be in danger."

"They weren't, that I know of, in the second movie, but if it's that hard on Sam not telling his best friend..." I glanced at Bee, trying to judge how he felt about a human having that title, but he didn't seem remotely bothered by it. No, he was currently gently rubbing Sam's back with a single finger, looking worried.

"We will discuss that later." I felt the tell tale tingle of a scan, and immediately shuddered, turning my attention to Ratchet with a glare. "Your energy signature is only marginally different from that of the Allspark." He made a soft humming noise. "Yet it is not Allspark radiation within you anymore. It is just your signature. I am concerned. This _may_ cause the Decepticons to hunt you with more vigor than they hunt us."

"Because I smell like the Allspark?" I made a face, causing Bee to snicker slightly. Sticking my tongue out at him, I smiled as he laughed even more, causing Sam to smile ever so slightly. "Gee, I dunno whether to be insulted or complimented. Is that some twisted way of saying I smell good?"

Ratchet gave me an odd look, before his optics seemed to dim. "Optimus is reporting in."

"So Sam..." I looked down at the human boy, leaving Ratchet to get the progress report. "How are things with you and Mikeala?" He smiled and blushed, and I raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you glad she decided to get in the car with you?"

He jerked a little, looking surprised, before shaking it off. "I don't think I'll ever get used to that."

I rolled my eyes, laying down in Sunstreaker's palm with my head hanging over the edge. I felt his fingers shift, curling around me more, but otherwise, he didn't move or make a sound. "Deja Vu. Major Lennox said the same thing earlier. I can understand. Sorry."

"Nah, there's nothing for you to be sorry about. I mean, it's not like you crossed time and space with a thought, to come here and throw us all for a loop. And even if you did, you're trying to help us. That makes you a good guy, uh, girl." Scratching the back of his head, I couldn't help but giggle at Sam's almost endless awkwardness.

"Optimus has reported two incoming meteors, identified as Skids and Mudflap. They've found and retrieved Jetfire and are currently awaiting the landing of the twins before returning to base." He scowled slightly. "Of all the bots..."

"Yeah, but Sun-uh, Sunstreaker is already here." I grinned, feeling the way Sunstreaker's fingers twitched. "And Sideswipe's on his way." His fingers twitched again, more sharply, and I found my hand gently running over the padded leather of his hand, trying to sooth him. I was probably only succeeding in smearing bodily oils -or whatever passed for them in my new body- all over the area, which he'd shriek about later, but still... The thought was the same. "You've already got half of one set of twins, now you've got the others, too!"

"Don't remind me."

The look on his face, and tone of his voice were so dry, I couldn't help but laugh. The first bots were arriving already, that was good news, and those two, although annoying about ninety-five percent of the time, could also be amusing. Even as I lay curled up on Sunstreaker's palm, I couldn't help but wonder what was going to happen next.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_So I was a little surprised when Sunstreaker didn't, well, drop me. Sure, I was his charge, but he could have put me at ground level and dropped me off his palm. I mean, I was in the form of a 'squishy' and laying on his hand, and he didn't look the least bit bothered by it. He just kept up with that indifferent, aloof expression of his the entire time, glaring down at me whenever he caught me looking at him._

_Sam seemed oddly soothed after our talk. No, that wasn't right. He pulled me aside, almost demanding more details about his attempt at a normal life, and I gave them to him. We were alone, so I didn't watch what I said, nor did I hide the fact I was confused and unhappy. Sure it was overwhelming for him, try _my_ freakin' point of view!_

_At least _he_ was still human!_

_After that, it was like he'd come to some internal decision, almost like at least a little bit of the weight was pulled off his shoulders. He actually smiled at me, and thanked me for being honest, before leaving. Not long after that, I was standing outside when the Camaro went racing to the docks._

_I just hoped I hadn't made a huge mistake._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : August 17, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	29. Outsider

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Legend** :

"Speaking"

_Thoughts_

_**'Internal Communications'**_

_"Cybertronian"_

**Note** : Oh dear lord! Thank you to **Blue Phoenix-Wolf** who sent me a link to a video of the filming of TF3. Yeah, I'd call that a pretty big fail, too. Now I feel the need to go find a local Camaro and hug it. :'( *Hugs her Bumblebee*

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I wasn't sure what to make of the twins' arrival. I was caught in the chaos between the return of the main Autobots with Jetfire, and the two smaller, easily exciteable twins, and could only stand off to the side like some wall flower. I felt...awkward, like I didn't belong there._

_Not so much like a freak, in that moment. Just...like I...didn't belong. I wasn't one of their human allies from the movie. I wasn't a Cybertronian ally. When they reunited with the soldiers and Bee, and Sam, I could only lean against the wall and watch._

_On the upside, I wasn't the only one._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

I couldn't help but stare. Maybe I should have, as much as he loved attention, he also hated being stared at. Still, I couldn't help it. He stood next to me, leaning casually against the wall, with his arms crossed over his chest. His optics were narrowed with some unfathomable expression.

And they narrowed even more as he slowly turned his head my way, rolling his optics over towards me. "Any reason you are staring, femme?"

I frowned. "Yeah, you're sitting _here_, and not joining them."

"Neither are you."

I felt it like a punch in the gut. For all intents and purposes, I was one of them now. An Autobot. A Cybertronian femme. That didn't help, however. "So...?" Shrugging a little, I turned away from him. "I'm not... I don't know them."

"Really? You predicted their arrival, and spoke of them to Ratchet with a sense of familiarity."

"I meant, I don't _know_ them. We've never actually met." I felt my chest tightening, and my already short nerves beginning to fray with annoyance. Leaning off the wall, I watched as the two newcomers stared at all the vehicles, their eyes immediately going to the Beat and Trax. They were very new arrivals, the cars that is. They were Concept models still, and working on bugs, but considering _they_ wouldn't be coming to life...

I knew what was going to happen. I knew what forms they were going to take, and I knew them by their colors. I didn't need to see any of this. With a deep breath I turned and left the hangar. I was once again in my larger, robotic mode. It had been part of my initial introduction. Luckily, they were more concerned with the humans and the cars than the other bots in that very moment.

The fresh air outside the hangar did little to make my breathing easier. I eyed the dock in the distance wistfully. _I wonder if Optimus will let me leave the island..._ I almost snorted at the idea. _I'm their key to winning the next battle with few to possibly no casualties. Not to mention, at the moment, I'm the only femme._

I took a few steps away from the building, and nearly jumped out of my new metallic shell when I felt a touch on my foot. Glancing down, I spotted Maggie with Rika by her side.

"Hey Bella."

"Heya Bells!"

I transformed down and gave them a small smile. If I was being brutally honest, I felt more comfortable like this, with them, than I did as a giant robot. Maybe it was because I didn't know a lot of the bots well. I'd never actually _met_ Ironhide, beyond that one day where I ran like hell. I only knew Ratchet as a medic, though I'm _still_ proud of myself for getting him to laugh. Prime was easy enough to get along with, and yes, I felt comfortable enough around him. There was a generally calming, soothing sense about him that did wonders for my nerves.

Bumblebee was sweet, but I felt awkward around him, because admittedly, I kept worrying about trying to talk to him. I mean, I knew he could communicate through his radio easy enough, but I kept feeling like... What if I mentioned something about him _talking_, and he takes it personally? Or what if I say or do something as a joke that he takes as an insult?

The new twins were even worse. I barely knew them at all. They were more background characters, to me, in the second movie. I knew they were close, and I knew they were argumentative, and I knew they were cocky and confident, and pranksters... That's _all_ I knew.

Jazz was unconscious. 'Nuff said.

And Sunstreaker... Do I really need to get into that? On the upside, I felt more comfortable around him. On the other, I didn't want to be glued to his side, and annoying him more than ever in the process.

"Hey guys. What's up?" I gave in as Rika grabbed my arm and led me away from the hangar, only looking back once. And I could only blink a moment, seeing a familiar golden yellow-framed head and narrowed blue optics, before I turned away. "Uh, guys?"

"So dish!" Rika turned her back to another building, a storage facility of some sort, I think. "What's with the new guys?" Maggie matchd her curious look, even as I shrugged. It was kind of funny, their lack of concern. Half the base was in an uproar, the humans not-so-happy about the newcomers, and yet here were two girls who didn't look the least bit bothered.

"Jetfire is a former Decepticon who defected to the Autobot side." I glanced over my shoulder at the giant figure, hulking as he leaned on his cane, red optics watching the humans around him with an alert awareness. "He was a big factor to saving Optimus in the second movie." I turned back to the girls. "And he's a little old and decrepit, so if he farts a parachute, don't mind him."

Maggie slapped a hand over her mouth as she laughed; Rika just doubled up laughing, and I giggled. The idea _was_ beyond hilarious, even if I was being completely serious.

"And the other two?" Maggie snickered again.

"Skids and Mudflap. They're twins, and they're a _mega_ pain in the ass!" I rolled my eyes and sighed deeply, shaking my head. "The love each other dearly, but also love to insult each other like you wouldn't believe. They also, I think, tend to get into a lot of physical fights, so, uh...watch yourself around them." I grimaced a little, remembering how Bumblebee had to break them up more than once, before they broke something important.

Like...say...Sam.

"If they're twins, how are we gonna tell them apart?"

"Skids will be green, and 'Flap will be red." I shrugged again.

"Ohhh..." Maggie nodded a little, before eyeing me curiously. "And how are you? I heard you'd transformed, but to _see_ it..." She shook her head, looking a little dazed. "What's it like?"

Now I frowned. "I feel like a freak. Like I have one foot in both worlds, but don't really _belong_ in either." The girls frowned at me, and sighed. "And I'm not the only one who thinks like that. I've heard some of the soldiers talking."

"Oh, really now."

I froze at hearing the new voice, and let my eyes fall shut with a mental curse. My heart hummed hotly in my chest as I turned, peeking my eyes open. "Um, hi?" I could have happily curled up in a hole and died, when I spotted William Lennox and Robert Epps standing behind me. Neither man looked happy, and I cursed again. "How long have you...?"

"Long enough." His eyes were narrowed, the blue almost electric as he frowned at me. "How long has that been going on, and why didn't you tell anyone?"

"Well, I can understand." I shrugged, ducking my head. I couldn't help feeling like a child getting scolded. I didn't want to cause trouble, and look at what I was doing. "I mean, they're not used to us. They're freaked out."

"That doesn't give them the right to insult the bots who've given up their homes and lives to come here and help us protect our world." Epps' own eyes were flared with anger. "And that includes you. You might not have fought beside us, but you came here, turning into a freaking Cybertronian, to help us prepare for the next big battle, or _whatever's_ coming. I think that entitles you to a _little_ curtesy."

"It's okay." I shook my head. "They'll get used to the Autobots."

"No, it's not okay." Will was still glaring. "We're supposed to be working together, not insulting each other behind their backs." He was scowling as he eyed passing soldiers.

I snorted, causing him and Epps to turn to me. "You haven't heard some of the things Sunstreaker comes up with."

"That's Sunstreaker."

"And those are those specific people." I raised an eyebrow, folding my arms over my chest. "As long as they do their part to help us and don't betray us, let them say what they like. It's not like you can make them think completely differently about us with a 'talk', anyways. Everyone's entitled to their opinions."

"Not when it hurts people." Maggie stepped forward, frowning.

"I think..." I bit my lip, before shaking my head again. "I think it's just me. I'm...sensitive enough about this whole changing species thing. Their words don't help, but I think I'm the only one it really bothers." I hated that I was making excuses, but I didn't blame these people for their words. This was still so new to everyone, I knew there'd be haters. It'd take time to build a bond with the Autobots and humans.

"Frag that." I turned as the sound of a powerful engine approached, and frowned at the sleek Ferrari. "It bothers you, and in turn, it will bother anyone who knows about it." There was a griding sound from his engine. "Pathetic humans need to learn to watch themselves against creatures bigger and stronger than them."

"You forget, I used to _be_ a 'pathetic human'." I frowned at Sunstreaker, whose engine rumbled loudly in response. "And why do you even care? You hate me, remember? Pathetic, oily squishy?" I glared at the vehicle as it remained silent, the engine gunning.

In fact, everyone was quiet. Even Rika, which was unlike her. That's what really made me realize the awkward silence that hung in the air. I guess I could thank Primus for small miracles. At least the topic was open to changing, since everyone seemed a little lost at the moment.

Well, maybe not everyone. Will still looked ready to teach the new twins how to play ping pong, with a few specific soldiers playing the role of the ping pong balls.

Taking a deep breath, I turned to Lennox. "Major, I was wondering if I could ask for a...well, it's not a small favor..." He raised an eyebrow, but stayed quiet. "I wanna leave the island, for a little while. I just...wanna go out and live among normal humans for a bit. This is all getting to be too much for me." My chest constricted. I didn't feel like a prisoner. I just felt like an outsider.

"I don't think that's a good idea. You're still new to your body, and we have no idea what the Decepticons are up to right now." He frowned. "Besides, where would you go?"

"Home." It was a quiet murmur, but I thought to my little apartment. "To my place. Maybe watch some tv, go on the computer..." I shrugged. "Take a bus into town. I just need...a sense of normalcy." Suddenly, it all made sense. Sam's need for a normal life was all too clear.

It was nice dealing with giant alien robots. The idea of being cared for, protected, held, sitting on their shoulder, relaxing with them, riding in their cool alternate modes, it was all amazing. Even fighting in their war, saving lives... Hell, saving the freakin' _world_! It would be unbelievable. _Living_ with them, on the other hand? On their base? With no outside contact? No school? No work? Hanging out with ordinary friends? Family?

Yeah, suddenly, I understood his need for a normal life all too well, and I seriously began to regret being so harsh on him earlier.

"Talk to Optimus and Ratchet about it. If they okay it, I'll see what I can do." He didn't look pleased about it, but sighed heavily. The tension seemed to melt out of his body as he did so. "I've been meaning to visit my family, too. We could all probably use a time out." Gesturing with his head, he moved to the side. "I think the new guys got their alternate modes picked. Optimus should be free, but Ratchet's tending to Jetfire."

"Makes sense." I nodded. "Jetfire's really old."

And of course, Rika chose that particular moment to speak up. "And apparently farts parachutes."

And just like that, the tension was broken. Will and Epps exchanged a look, before cracking up, and that sent the girls laughing. Even I couldn't resist the urge to giggle. The only one who remained quiet, which immediately caught my attention, was Sunstreaker. But he didn't retreat, either, like I would have expected. I didn't know what to make of it, but stared at him a long moment, before turning away.

"You know Ratchet's gonna wanna weld your ass to his medical bay." Rika raised an eyebrow with a frown.

"Not if I annoy him to the point of him _needing_ me to be gone." I grinned as an idea hit me. "All I need to do is practice my transformations, and I should be good to go."

"What're you planning?" Epps narrowed his eyes now. "Another prank, I take it? I'm not the victim this time, am I?" There was a growl in his voice, but a sparkle in his eyes as he spoke.

"Nah, I don't wanna put a bigger dent in the base's cheesiness." Will snickered and Epps nudged him sharply with a sour look, but the humor in his own eyes wasn't lost on anyone. "I'm thinking a little more...uhm...girlie?" I could have said 'gayly' but wasn't sure if that was the word to use. Further thought, however, prooved it was indeed the perfect word for it, and I felt my lips tremble. "I might need a little help getting supplies, however." I was thinking pink paint, sparkly things to glue and/or weld to his frame, and maybe even a holoform modification, if I could get an Autobot to help. "First things first, I need to talk to Ratchet."

"Speak to Optimus, first." Now Lennox was smirking. "Ratchet seemed irritable."

"When _isn't_ he?"

Rika snorted behind me. "More irritable than usual, I take it?"

Will nodded.

I shrugged and stepped forward. Immediately, the Ferrari backed up, spinning around in a smooth move and taking off for the hangar. I watched him for a moment, before moving after him. I cleared the humans, before transforming again, each time getting easier. I moved back into the hangar and immediately located the larger bot.

It hit me then, I couldn't well call him the larg_est_ bot anymore. Not with Jetfire around.

I approached him quietly, ducking my head a little in greeting as he turned to me, nodding. "Hi Optimus."

"Greetings, youngling."

I paused at his term, and raised an eyebrow. "I'm not _that_ young." He regarded me with clear amusement, and I shook my head. "Anyways, I was wondering if...if I could leave the base? Sometime? This week?" My voice was quiet, hesitant, and Optimus' amusement faded. "I need a little time away from the base. I don't feel right being here."

"Absolutely not."

With a growl, I glared at Ratchet as he approached. _What is it with people sneaking up on me?_ "I'm a prisoner then?" Optimus flinched, and Ratchet's optics narrowed. "If I'm really a guest, I should be able to come and go as I please, and I please. I mean..." I sighed as my anger faded, leaving just an overwhelming sense of longing. "I just need...a few days. To myself. To make sense of this."

"It is not wise. You have already made it clear you are not a warrior, and yet you wish to return to your own world, without protection I assume?"

"Well, don't take this the wrong way, but... Having an Autobot following me around would be a great big homing beacon. A regular girl driving a semi?" I raised an eyebrow at Optimus, before turning to Ratchet. "A medical hummer?" I turned back to Optimus. "A giant Topkick truck? There's no _way_ I could logically explain a Ferrari, considering where I live, or a jet for that matter. And I don't hate the world enough to unleash the twins on it." I grumbled the last bit with a small smile, and I watched as Optimus smiled slightly back, before turning serious. "I can blend in better if I'm alone."

"Yet you are also in more danger alone. _That _is why I will not allow it." Optimus shook his head. "You are more innocent than any I have known, and the Decepticons would enjoy breaking you. I cannot allow the risk."

I felt my eyes narrowing. "Don't you usually have an Autobot making rounds in Tranquility?" He frowned. "So I won't be far away if I'm in danger. If I stay here, I'm going to go crazy."

Sunstreaker snorted, and I flipped him off without even looking, before shooting him a look. "Crazy enough to make _you_ look sane. And considering who I'm talking to, that's saying something." I snipped, before turning back to Optimus, ignoring the transformed Ferrari behind me, with the stuttering engine.

Optimus vented and slanted a look at Ratchet. "How is she, medically?"

"Stable, as far as I can tell. Nothing else in her body seems to be changing at all. All she needs is to learn about her new body. Optimus..." Ratchet was downright glaring now. "I do not like this. I do not want her to leave the island until she has mastered her transformations. Walking, running, and learned at least _some_ fighting techniques."

"And by that time, I'll be...crazier than Screamer on a bad day." I put in dryly. "Not to mention, I'm _right here_. You don't need to talk about me like I'm not around." Then I sighed. "I don't think I have the strength to stay here much longer."

"Isabella, you must realize, returning to that world will not help you to adapt to what you are now. It will simple provide you with a chance to live a lie."

"So give me that chance!" I pleaded, feeling my eyes burning. "Give me the chance to say goodbye! To be _me_!"

They exchanged another look, and I stared at them both, trying not to dare to hope, but being unable to help it. Finally, Optimus sighed, and Ratchet shot him a dark, angry look. "Alright. You must learn to walk and run without hesitation, and at least the basics in fighting. I have also heard the other humans may wish time with their families. Once you are ready, we will temporarily disband."

Ratchet vented deeply, growling. "Well _I_ will be tending to Jazz and Jetfire on the base."

"And I will be coordinating our efforts to form this 'NEST' Bella has spoken about." Optimus nodded at me. "The others will be allowed to explore this world, as long as they can remain undercover. We will return within one Earth week."

"Oh, thank you!" I smiled up at the larger bot. I could wait a little while, and I would train hard to learn everything I had to. Turning, I walked out of the hangar, the smile fixed on my face, and transformed down, squealing a little as I ran over to Rika and Maggie. "He said yes!"

They blinked at me in surprise, before Rika broke out into a grin. "Seriously?"

"So...does this mean no prank?" Maggie pouted, but I could see the excitement and amusement in her eyes.

I grinned at her. "Oh hell no! This just means I can play the prank for the hell of it." I caught the worried looks the guys shot each other and smirked widely, already planning it. "Oh yes, this is going to be _good_!"

* * *

**(?)**

It was dark, dank, and smelled horrible. Bots wandered aimlessly up and down the halls, over half of them muttering about their surroundings darkly. They grumbled about the leadership, and the lack of action. One bot in particular, a silver bot, stalked down the hall quietly, ignoring everyone.

_"Sideways."_ A large jet rounded a corner and his optics narrowed at the silver bot._ "Welcome to the mudball planet."_

The bot snarled lowly_. "Such a great welcome, too. I land on this filthy, insect-ridden planet, and I'm taken underground."_ His optics narrowed. _"Megatron would never have allowed us to exist in such filth."_

There was a low snarl, and optics flashed darkly. _"Megatron was offlined by a pathetic fleshling of this planet. He is not fit to rule over us, if he is taken out so easily."_

_"And you are? You will have us all offlined before we know it!"_ Sideways stood, tense, watching as Starscream snarled lowly, advancing on him a moment, before he paused and slowly smirked.

_"I've done what not even Megatron could." _He turned, leading Sideways down the long hall to where a Cybertronian-style doorway stood, lights blinking on and off. Swiping a hand over it, it slid open, and kept that same smirk glued to his features as he stepped inside, smugly showing off the prize within.

_"Well I'll be!"_ Sideways smirked widely. _"Maybe you're good for something after all!"_

There was a rumble of a powerful engine, and a roar of rage. Chains clanked and angry whistles and clicks sounded. Starscream stalked forward, glaring haughtily down at their prisoner, before lashing out with his foot and connecting it with the side of the face glaring up at him.

_"Watch your glossa, pathetic scum, or I'll remove it for you."_ He kicked the bot hard, backhanding them, and hissing as he pulled wires and cables, causing the bot to scream hoarsely in agony. _"So helpless. Just like that human femme."_ There was a low warning snarl, and bright blue optics flashed angrily._ "We're still hunting her. It's only a matter of time before we find her, and we never would have had a clue if it hadn't been for you hounding her. All because of the information she had."_ He laughed darkly. _"Information we can use to finally put an end to your pathetic resistance."_

_"Good riddence."_

With another laugh, the new Decepticon leader turned and stalked out of the room, leaving the angrily hissing and clicking bot behind him and leading Sideways further into the base.

* * *

**Written** : August 18, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	30. Convulsions

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : For those of you guessing, so far I've heard Ultra Magnus, Prowl, Elita-One and Sideswipe. All I will tell you now is that it's a 'he' so it's not Elita. Other than that, you'll have to wait a chapter or five for the answer. XD And yes, I made it intentionally cryptic.

And no, I can't even give you a color yet, because he's one nekkie bot who hasn't even gotten a chance to chose an alternate mode. XD

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_It took hours of practice, alone, outside base perimeter, for me to master walking. I felt like I was on some super workout regiment, and despite the burning in my limbs, I couldn't stop. Not when I was making such progress. I mastered my walking so that I could walk through the base, without having to play hopscotch with the humans. Then I worked on running. It must have been well into the night before I finally stopped, and not because I wanted to. One thing I hated about my change was the fact that things could hit me out of the blue, without warning._

_One minute I was running along a field -really only about five quick steps back and forth at my size- and the next, I was suddenly so tired, I couldn't move without threat of falling on my face. I kind of just stood there, swaying, my vision getting blurrier and blurrier._

_But...dead of night, pitch black out, and blurriness aside, I could still clearly make out the familiar yellow form as it approached. Even as I felt my legs give out, he transformed up, and I found myself being lifted, instead of falling._

_That was the last thing I remembered_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**(Next Day)**

You'd think, after several days in this new form, I'd be used to the recharging cycle. Unfortunately, unlike humans, the schedule wasn't all that flexible without over-ride codes, which I wouldn't know how to use if they bit me in the ass. I had to recharge at the same time every day, or my own body would just shut down on me, against my will.

What made it _really_ difficult was the fact... I didn't feel it coming. I didn't feel myself getting sleepier and sleepier by the moment. One minute I was fine. The next, I was falling to the ground.

Only...I wasn't falling.

When I finally felt all my systems coming online again, I opened my eyes and spotted a bright blue sky. Not the ground I expected, or the ceiling of my makeshift quarters. No, I saw bright blue sky, blinding sun, and the shadowed forms of several birds flying overhead.

_What the...?_

I frowned, shifting my head a little, and suddenly became aware I wasn't laying flat, despite the fact I was sill in the even field. I looked over and blinked, feeling my eyes widen, when I realized I was being held. And not by just any bot, either.

Sunstreaker's head was bowed, his body balanced precariously in a sitting position. His optics were offline, and his engine running very quietly. I could feel his one arm locked tightly around my upper back, and his other right behind my knees. Despite being relaxed, his body was rigid.

Immediately, I felt shocked and guilty. For all I knew, the moment he woke up, he'd be in incredible pain. Yet, I didn't dare move, terrified that I'd only make everything worse if I did. I could only...stare at him. Without the constant frown or glare on his face, he really looked remarkably young. Sure I _knew_ he was young, only so much older than Bumblebee himself, but seeing it now...

Was it the war that made him jaded? Or was it Sunstreaker just being Sunstreaker?

With a jerk, his optics suddenly lit up and the engine revved a little. He straightened, then without error, locked his optics on me. I felt myself heat, and could have kicked myself when those stupid cooling fans switched on, causing him to smirk almost deviously. Another downside to being a giant alien robot. If I got nervous or embarrassed or anything, my body temperature rose, and those stupid fans would kick in.

Seeing the smirk, I got an evil idea. I was, again, going on a theory, but suddenly I found myself smirking back. I shifted out of his arms by wrapping an arm around his neck and lifting myself in just such a way, my side brushed across his chest. I kept my eyes locked on him, watching as he lowered his arms with only a little hesitation...or was it strain? I eyed him carefully, but he _seemed_ ok.

I stood easily and turned, shifting so I was straddling his lap, before sitting down on his lap. This caused his smirk to falter, and a single optic ridge to raise slowly. His optics seemed to brighten as I shifted closer to him. "I never _did_ thank you for catching me." I lowered my voice, and relaxed, so it came out softer. There was _no_ mistaking the way his optics widened ever so slightly. There was also no mistaking the rev of his engine, or the way the cooling fans in his body seemed to crank up a notch.

I ran my fingers over the edges of his armor slightly, and felt his body go rigid beneath and against me. Leaning even further in, I could feel him cycling the air, the cool air he pulled in, and the only slightly warmer air he let out. "So..." My lips brushed against his, and I vaguely thought about all the different theories around if they kissed or not.

He stiffened even more, and his body warmed. His engine revved louder, but I got the impression it wasn't from anger this time.

I pressed my body against his, rubbing my chest against his, and nearly hissed at the electric jolts that ran through me. It was an oddly pleasureable sensation, and I rubbed against his chest again, causing him to press back with a grunt and a growl. Another jolt hit me. As quickly as the feeling came, I pulled back, patting his cheek with a strained smile. "Thanks, hon." I nearly chirped the words in a mock cheery tone. I stood and turned away, letting the smile fade as my eyes widened. _What the bloody hell was that?_ Sure, I knew they mated through their sparks, but I never imagined the chest plating would be _that_ sensitive.

Hearing the growl behind me, my smile came easier. "That was _not_ nice." The tone was low, almost husky in an odd, choked, metallic sense. "I believe the human term would be 'tease'."

"Aww." I turned and mock pouted at him, blinking my wide optics on and off. "Poor Sunny, who can have any femme he wants. Don't worry, the Arcee triplets will be here sometime in the next two years." I kept pouting at him, but went rigid as soon as I realized what I'd just said. "Oh, I'm sorry!" I slapped my hands over my mouth, even though it was a little too late to censor myself.

He stared at me and tilted his head a little. To my surprise, he didn't snap at me about calling him Sunny. Instead, he vented. "And what do the Arcee triplets have to do with anything?"

"Well, aren't you...you know...a flirt? A lot of, uh, fans from my world used to think you and Sides were...flirts with femmes." The awkwardness level kept growing, and I shifted a little, uncomfortably. "I didn't mean to... I was just...teasing, like you said."

He scoffed a little. "And you got a little more than you bargained for in that. You didn't expect the feeling to be so intense?" I ducked my head, the cooling fans switching on loudly, and his smirk returned. "Normally a touch to the chest plates would _not_ be so intense, but when two chests rub together, you know deep in your processor what is happening. That trigger's the hypersensitivity. Well, there's more to it than that, but I'm not _that_ evil." He chuckled darkly a little, shaking his head. "And now I believe you know better than to _tease_ about something you are not ready to finish."

I nodded, glancing up at him. I watched him carefully, processing his words. They made a lot of sense, but at the same time, I kept expecting him to get mad and snap at me. When he frowned, raising an optics ridge, I hesitated, before the words just slipped out. "Aren't you pissed?"

"'Pissed'?" He cocked his head to the side. "I do not need to lubricate, no."

I slapped a hand to my forehead and shook my head, trying not to laugh. "No, I mean... Aren't you mad?" His frown deepened, but the look was more hesitant than a downright glare. It was definitely a step up from his nasty, disgusted looks from before. "You know, about calling you by _his_ nickname?" It was odd, having a civilized conversation with him. He still kept up with the usually hostile or indifferent tones and looks, but there were softer moments...

He didn't always glare at me, or look at me with disgust. He didn't always speak to me with disgust. I _think_ he might _actually_ have been warming up to me. It was a big shock. Both welcome and confusing, but trust me, I'm not complaining!

"It's hardly _his_." He spat, his optics darkening with anger. "He came up with it, but many call me by it, whether I like it or not." He vented deeply, his chest heaving with the effort, and folded his arms over his chest. "And as long as you don't take liberties, then... I suppose I can handle you calling me by that." He shot me a dark look. "Just don't take it personally, or feel special. I let _everyone_ call me Sunny."

"You usually snap at them for it." I shrugged a little.

"And yet, it doesn't stop them." Shaking his head, he shifted a little. "What about this prank of yours?"

"Oh slag! The prank!" I looked up at the sky, winced at the brightness of the sun, before turning towards the base. "What time is it? Will Ratchet be awake? I'm gonna need time for the paint to dry! And the glue!" I spun back to Sunstreaker, who was looking more and more interested. "Will he still be in recharge?"

"Not for long, but I can fix that." He bared his dental plates at me in an almsot feral smirk.

"Do I wanna know?" I stepped back, suddenly fearing him all the more.

He grinned and stepped forward, his usual, cocky saunter back. "A little trick Side-" He abruptly cringed, doubling over with a grunt and a pained hiss.

"Sunstreaker!" I rushed towards him, and wrapped my arms around him, trying to help support him as he clutched at his chest. "What's wrong? Sunny?" I slipped my hand under him and grabbed the one pressed to his chest, squeezing slightly as I struggled to help stabilize him so he didn't crash face down on the ground. "Dammit Sunny, talk to me!" I tried to help him, but yelped painfully as he collapsed, dragging me with him.

My knees connected with the ground, tree trunks and brush jamming into my joints and causing burning agony to ripple up my legs as I tried to heft him. _What's happening?_ I looked to the base. "Talk to me, or I'm screaming for Ratchet with all I have!" _Prank be damned!_

"D-Don't!" He gasped noisily, his hand suddenly clenching mine tightly, almost painfully tightly. "D-D-Don't." I felt him venting hard, almost gasping noisily. His body shuddered violently, and he leaned heavily on me, until my own body was screaming in protest against his heavy weight.

"God, I don't know what to do!" I gripped his hand just as tightly, my other hand rubbing what I hoped was soothing circles against his back. I could feel my heart racing to the point my own body was shaking. I _felt_ him trembling. I _heard_ him gasping. The ever strong Sunstreaker seemed...so unlike himself. And there was nothing I could do but hold him, try to comfort him. "You need to hang on, Sunstreaker! You can do it." I squeezed his hand, hugging him closer to me, the panic nearly blinding.

Ever so slowly, his shaking got less and less, and his breathing evened out. I held him as he took in a deep breath, letting it out as a really loud sigh, and his body seemed to relax.

"C-C-Conv-vulsion." His tone was raspy, staticky.

"Convulsion...? From Sideswipe's absense?" He nodded ever so slighly. "Oh my... Slag!." I rubbed my hand against his back softly. "Well he'd better hurry up and get his aft on Earth then." He straightened, optics clenched shut, and lip plates pulled taught as he relaxed back. Almost immediately, he pulled off of me, and his optics shot open. "Are you okay now? Do you need Ratchet?"

He turned to me, before looking down. I followed his gaze to where he was still holding my hand. He recoiled, dropping the appendage as if burned. "Don't you dare tell anyone-" He growled, glaring, standing, looking like his old self again.

So much for the blatant lack of hostilities.

"If I told anyone, they'd drag you kicking and screaming, all the way to Ratchet." I raised an optic ridge, frowning. _And I'm not entirely sure they'd be wrong but... I have to trust Sunstreaker to know if and when he needs help._ I didn't feel all that comfortable not telling Ratchet. Sunstreaker was stubborn. His spark could be fluttering wildly in a Decepticon's hand, and he'd brush it off like a flesh wound. I could see his glare, expectant, and dropped my head.

If I told Ratchet, I'd be betraying Sunstreaker. If I didn't...if this was severe enough, it could cost him his life, and it would be all my fault for remaining silent.

"I...don't want...anything to happen to you." I raised my hand to my chest, feeling my eyes burning. My voice was nothing but a whisper. "I wouldn't...be able to live with...myself." I breathed deeply, beyond the pain, and shut my eyes. I couldn't decide. My logical side kept telling me to trust him. My heart...it told me to tell Ratchet. Would it really be so bad having Sunstreaker loathe me more than the Decepticons, if it kept him safe?

"Tch, whatever. I'll deny it." He stood, and I heard him walking away. "Are you going to do that prank or not?"

The _last_ thing I felt like doing was pranking anyone. Still, Maggie and Rika would be expecting it. I did warn them. They'd know something was up, if I didn't. Then again, Optimus could crap poseys, and I doubt I'd even crack more than the faintest of smiles. Not now. Not with this new information.

"I'm fine, femme."

I looked up at him to see him eyeing me oddly thoughtfully. "I'd hardly call collapsing on the ground in pain 'fine'."

He raised an optic ridge before walking over. He stared down at me oddly. "I..." His optics left mine, and lowered, and abruptly narrowed. "You are damaged."

It took the words to really make me aware of hot searing pain in my leg. Glancing down, I hissed, wincing, as I spotted the jagged shard of a boulder. It might have shattered when I more or less landed on it, and a shard of it was jammed into a cable. Violet energon leaked out around it, and every time I shifted, the agony that rippled up my leg caused me to sink my teeth into my lip plates in order not to scream.

Movement had me looking up, and blinking as Sunstreaker reached out, pulling the shard from my leg without even a second of warning. I had to slap my hand over my mouth to muffle the cry, but the tears burned in my eyes anyways. Before I could utter a word, or a question, he moved again and I was being lifted.

"W-What...?"

"You are going to Ratchet. You will get treatment, and you will do your prank another time. We cannot afford to have any one of us injured at all. Not with the Decepticons hunting us." His was frowning, but he refused to meet my eyes. "I would prefer...if you did not mention my lapse to Ratchet." He glowered at the base in front of us.

"If I don't, and you're too stubborn to -and I _know_ you're too stubborn to-" I shot him a look and watched as he raised an optic ridge, but didn't try to hide the brief smirk. "If something happens to you, I'd never forgive myself."

He stopped cold, the smirk falling from his features. Abruptly, he put me down, this time on the warm, solid, even ground of the tarmac. I hissed as pressure was put on the damaged cable, and limped a little, but otherwise stabilized myself and looked up at him, suddenly worried I'd said the wrong thing.

"Why do you care?" His optics flashed, and I couldn't describe the emotion on his face.

"Everyone cares, Sun-uh, Sunstreaker." His optics flashed again. "You two..." I paused, feeling that awkwardness roll back over me. "You two were always my favorite characters. You care about everyone, but you're too 'cool' to show it openly, except with each other. You're amazing fighters, fun, strong bots. I just... I _hated_ that Bay had Sideswipe in the second movie, but not you. I always preferred the stories where you're together, because it just doesn't feel right when you're not."

"You don't know me." His optics narrowed, and I watched as he straightened ever so slightly, almost stiffly. "You _shouldn't_ care so much for bots you've never had a chance to _know_, personally."

"But I do."

"So does that mean you will tell him?" There was a defense about his stance, and his voice hardened.

Would I? _Could_ I? As much as I wanted to, and trust me, I _wanted_ to... "No." He blinked, jerking ever so slightly as his optics shot down to me. "But if we don't find Sideswipe soon, I might not have a choice. That was a bad attack, and you said it keeps getting worse. I... I need to talk to Optimus. Not about this though..." _Again._ What was it with me and running to big bot every time I had an issue?

Maybe it was because he always had sound advice. Or maybe...maybe it was because I just felt comfortable rambling on about my issues to him.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I was tense, and I was in pain. Sunstreaker actually ended up carrying me to Ratchet. I've never had anyone do that for me before, but it was amazing. I felt oddly enough like the beloved bride being carried over the thresh-hold, or a princess being carried by her prince._

_And no, I wasn't about to tell _him_ that! Even when he asked, when I squeaked embarrassingly._

_My leg hurt like hell, and Ratchet made it even worse as he rambled to himself about clumsiness and carelessness. At least it wasn't a bad injury, but apparently it was going to hurt for a while. On the upside, he was impressed with the work I'd done on my walking and running. He noticed it immediately. Well...except for the limping._

_I didn't mention Sunstreaker's convulsions, but I promised myself I was going to keep a closer eye on him. His charge or not, I saw him as, well...a friend. _

_Just don't tell _him_ that._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : August 18, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	31. Vacation, Part 1

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : FYI, I'm no longer using a spell check. I used it in this chapter, because I knew I had issues, and all my italics and normal words were bunched together, and my page breaks didn't save. I had to edit 5 times to get all the changes, and if I missed anything... *Growls* Anywho, I'm just gonna eyeball it from now on. -.-'

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_The time has finally come, and I couldn't be happier! I'm not some big fighter, but any means, but as a human I learned enough hand-to-hand combat that it would at least give the enemies pause. Now, all it took, since I got my balance re-aligned, was days of practice, re-learning the moves in a larger form._

_Sunstreaker's been insisting with his usual stubborn pride that I keep the cell phone, but I can't. I can't keep it, and he can't stay in town as he's promised. Not when I can see the look of longing in his eyes._

_Not when...a brief conversation with Optimus proved all too valuable. I've re-affirmed that it's entirely too possible there may yet be other bots hiding somewhere on Earth. There's a really tiny chance of finding them, but if they sent a couple soldiers to undercover in other states and continents, at least they'd know what they're looking for, right?_

_I can't let him stay, which he isn't too happy with. The only way I managed to get him to agree was by threatening to tell Ratchet about the convulsions. And then, that earned a glare reminiscent of the first day we met, and a day of being ignored._

_And the worst part? Since reminding him of his convulsions, I've been second guessing letting him leave. What if he had one while he was alone?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**(Severa****l Days Later)**

He glared at me, and I returned the favor in kind. We were in his alternate form after an absurdly long plane ride across the ocean, heading to my apartment. His holographic form's eyes were narrowed at me with annoyance and frustration. Emotions I mirrored.

"You are a fragging annoying femme, you know that?"

"That's the pot calling the kettle black." I raised an eyebrow, smirking as his annoyance briefly fled in place of confusion. "And no, I know you're not a pot, I'm not a kettle, and you're not calling me black. It's a human phrase. The point is, I'm no more stubborn then you." Suddenly, I raised the other eyebrow. "Not so fun having to deal with it, is it? Maybe now you can understand why the others get so annoyed so quickly with you."

"I'm not leaving. I'm your guardian."

I frowned at the reminder. "So let another bot watch over me. Optimus sent the twins to make runs through Tranquility, right? Well, what better way to make sure I don't get into trouble?" I shuddered a little. "Besides, you should be happy. The disgusting former-squishy's giving you a way out." Did he still think of me as disgusting? Oily? Messy?

He seemed to ignore my last comment. Instead, he smirked. "Can you blame them for feeling an attraction to you? You are the first femme they've likely lain optics on since the beginning of the war."

"The same could be said for nearly every other mech as well, and I don't see them making googley eyes at me." I paused then, groaning in horror at the mental image of a love-sick Ironhide, or Ratchet. I shuddered again. "Oh my Primus, bad image!"

"I do not..." He vented sharply, almost absently brushing his long, shaggy blonde hair out of his eyes in a surprisingly human fashion. "I do not feel comfortable leaving your safety in their hands."

"Then leave it to Optimus. I heard the soldiers, he needs to get away, too. This will give him a chance, and he can watch over me. And if you don't trust him to do the job, who can you trust?" I gave him a look, even as we turned into the parking lot to my place. "Besides, you need to look for _him_." I didn't have to say his name.

Sunstreaker nearly squealed into a spot, parking crookedly. His holographic eyes shut, but I didn't miss the flash of pain crossing his features. "I thought he wasn't here yet." His voice was dark, strained.

"I don't know. He's not with the others yet, but like you prooved, he could be somewhere on Earth, unable to contact you guys. There's no harm in _looking_, right? Just keep an eye out for anything unusual." I shrugged helplessly. "Just because I can't drive yet, or look myself, beyond the city, it doesn't mean you can't. Let Optimus watch over me."

It wasn't easy, telling him to leave. I didn't want him to. I hated to admit how accustomed to seeing him I was. His glares, his flippant attitude, and nearly always indifferent tone of voice. His yellow paint job, or Ferrari alt-mode. No, the more I thought about it, the more heart-breaking the idea of Sunstreaker leaving was.

Not to mention, he'd be in danger of Decepticons and convulsions if he went alone.

But if I kept thinking like I was paranoid for his spark, I'd never let him free to do anything, and he'd hate me all the more.

I could see his human holoform gritting his teeth and tapped his jaw slightly, surprised at how warm and smooth it was. It felt...real. He turned to me, and raised an eyebrow. I couldn't _see_ it, under his bangs, but I could just tell.

"Sideswipe is your twin." I spoke softly, feeling a pang of hurt in the words I was about to speak, but knowing they were true. Even deep in my own heart. "He's the most important one. If anything happens to him..." I shook my head. Popping the door open was difficult, and in any other situation, I might have made a wise-crack about Sunstreaker _wanting_ a squishy _in_ him, but as it was, I leaned over, wrapping my arms around his holographic form.

It was startling, and I couldn't get over how real he felt. His skin was soft, with give, and warm. I could feel the fake pulse against my arm, which rested against the side of his throat. He _breathed_ in that form. He blinked, he even _smelled_ like a real person.

Shaking off the sensation, I hugged him tightly. "If he's on Earth, I hope and pray we'll find him soon. Please, _please _take care of yourself, Sunstreaker." I pulled back and pressed a simple kiss to his cheek, before my eyes widened in horror at what I'd done.

He stared at me stiffly, rigidly, with wide eyes, as I leaned back.

"Uh, sorry." I moved and got out of the car quickly, before he could come back with a retort I really didn't want to hear. Before I left completely, however, as a last minute thought, I grabbed the cell phone. I didn't know if it was a part of him, or a holographic representation, like his human form, but I didn't want him to be too far from it, in case it strained his systems. _Optimus will watch over me_. That wasn't a reassuring thought, however. Well, reassuring yes. As reassuring as I would have liked...? No.

I tossed the phone lightly on the seat, before closing the door. The engine revved loudly, probably some signal to open the door again, or something, but I gently ran my hand along the hood, smirking when, human or not, I left a smear of a hand print across the surface. Then I sighed, turning and walking to my house.

It was odd. Even as I unlocked my door and stepped inside, I turned to find the Ferrari sitting there. It _really _stood out against the other models of cars in the parking lot, because it was so flashy. I could make out that it was idling, but then it slowly pulled out, driving away. Even as Sunstreaker left... I suddenly got a foreboding feeling like it might be the last time I ever saw him, and I had to literally restrain myself not to go running after him and beg him to stay.

I wanted to be selfish. I wanted to say Sideswipe was a strong mech, who could take care of himself. I knew it was _true_, too. But... I couldn't shake the 'what if' scenarios, all of which ended with me begging Sunstreaker to stay, him staying, something happening to Sideswipe, and Sunstreaker forever hating me for it.

My eyes burned with the irritatingly familiar feel of tears, and I watched as he turned a signal on at the edge of the parking lot driveway, turning onto the highway and increasing his speed. What was weird was that he was going the speed limit. Not something Sunny usually did. Still, he left.

Turning away from the window, I sighed heavily. I walked to my couch and sat down facing my television. I stared at the blank screen, frowning at it, and clueless what to do next.

"Now what...?" I was home, and I was tense. I wanted to get up and move, but I didn't know what I wanted to do. I felt...antsy. I grabbed my cordless phone and grimaced at the fact it had been on the charger all this time. I checked, and sure enough, I'd over charged the batteries, killing my phone. "Well, I guess phone shopping is my first step." I got up and walked to the back door. I could have gone out the front, but I just... There'd probably be questions and demands of my nosier neighbors, and let's not get into the mail pileup I probably had by this point.

None of which I felt like dealing with.

I slipped out my back door and locked up again. My chest felt tight and I felt _really_tense, as I walked off to the highway. The government had seen to reinstate me with a bus pass, since I told them that was my usual travel around town. Funny thing, they didn't even ask me why I didn't drive. Meh, I guess they didn't care. Either way, I now had an _official_ bus pass, that stated me as part of the military.

Ever heard of that saying 'Don't ask, don't tell'? Well I was putting that into effect here. I didn't care to know why they'd done such a thing, considering I was Cybertronian, I figured it was pretty much related to that anyways. I didn't care to ask, and they probably didn't care to tell.

I stood at the bus stop, and I couldn't help the way my eyes paused, scanning very nearly every car I could. They shot to every Camaro, or GMC truck, or smaller model Chevys... They were all normal cars, though. But when the bus approached, the first thing I noticed was that it was the same blue and red one from the other day. However this time, there was a proud Autobot insignia stamped on the center of the front grill, and despite my reservations, I smiled.

As much as I wanted to get away, it was nice the Autobots weren't completely absent in my life. It's not that I wanted away from them all together. I wanted to be more like Mikeala and Sam. Autobot allies and friends, but living life with other humans. If I ever wanted to get away, I could go to a club and dance, or hang out with my friends.

Can't really do all _that_ much, when you're not a soldier and stuck living on a base, after all.

I took my turn boarding and smiled at the driver, whose sunglasses were missing. Startlingly clear, bright blue eyes locked on me unerringly, with a knowing look. "Hi." I flashed my bus pass, merely for show, and he nodded.

"Hello." His voice wasn't as deep in this form,

It was...odd yet comfortable, having Optimus Prime as a bus. I was used to him as a semi, and if he ever had to transform quickly he was fragged sideways, but... I moved to my seat, and sat back, relaxing back. I listened to the idle chatter around me, and smiled a little at a couple of elderly ladies sitting next to me, gossiping.

"Did you _see_ the driver?"

"My! Who needs a heater with him around?" I slapped a hand over my mouth to keep from snorting and they shot me amused looks. They had no idea. "A boy like that's better suited as an underwear model."

"Mmmm...thongs..."

_Oh dear lord!_ My eyes widened as I immediately began to imagine Prime trying to model a thong, and a really embarrassing squeak escaped me. My eyes were watering from the force of trying not to laugh, especially when the mental image shifted to _Optimus Prime_, the giant, regal, Autobot leader, in his bipedal mode, trying the catwalk in a tiny thong.

I let my head hit the back of the seat with a dull thud, groaning behind my hand. He wasn't a bad looking man, or a bad looking mech, either, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't see him as...well, more a family figure. The kind uncle, a father, or even a big brother of sorts. Just..._not_ the kind of figure you wanted to imagine dancing around in a thong...

_Elita might like it, though..._That brought another thought to mind, and I glanced over to Optimus' holoform. _Is she even online? Would it be safe to ask?_

"See? She thinks so, too!"

I shook myself out of my thoughts, and turned to the ladies, noticing the way they smiled at me. "Actually-" I giggled, and then winced as Optimus shot me a confused look at a red light, causing me to snort painfully. I giggled some more feeling...remarkably more normal among other humans, who weren't soldiers that is. "I was just thinking about how I kinda know him, and I _don't_see him as an underwear model." I snorted again, hiccuping in my attempts _not_ to laugh hysterically.

"You have to use your imagination, girl!"

_Hell no! I'm trying not to, thank you very much!_ I slammed my eyes shut and shook my head. _Do they even _make_ thongs that big? Slag, I don't wanna know!_ The snickers were getting me the occasional look on Optimus' behalf. He clearly didn't know what they were talking about, and I clearly didn't _want_ him to know. He'd probably do it just to make two old ladies happy!

God, talk about a Kodak moment!

"He's definitely got the looks."

Giggling hysterically, I shook my head. "I'm too sexy for my shirt, too sexy for my shirt, so sexy, it _hurts_!" I paused then, the smile slipping off my face, as Sunstreaker's face crossed my mind. _No. The song is...better suited to him and his twin._ My amusement faded, and I lowered my head, letting my hair form a curtain between myself and the rest of the world. _Great, here I go again. I barely even _know_Sunstreaker, in real life, and I'm already mooning over him? He's not even...human..._

I cringed internally.

_Then again, neither am I, anymore. What am I gonna do? Stay single for the rest of my possibly impossibly long life? Why does it matter? Even if I am Cybertronian, he can do way better than me! Especially when Arcee and Flare-up arrive._

The bus slowed and I blinked, glancing up. It wasn't my stop, but the two giggling elderly ladies got up and with a smile at me, departed. I sighed a little and stood, making my way to the front. I leaned casually against the back of Optimus' seat. Generally, you weren't supposed to bother the driver, but people did this all the time for casual chatting, directions and more.

"So...Optimus..." He tilted his head my way, but kept his holographic eyes on the road. That didn't help the feeling of being watched, however. "A _bus_?" I watched in the rear-view mirror as his lips trembled. "You realize that's gonna impede on you transforming _really_ fast, cause you're going to have to let the little humans off, first, right?"

He frowned then. "It was a risk, but it was a risk I felt worth taking."

"In order to spy on me?" My voice was innocent, but my look...not so much.

He shrugged a little. "You refused to come to us, and we were worried about the knowledge you possessed."

"I didn't know _where_ you were, or hell, if you were even _real_." I nudged his shoulder slightly. Sighing then, I shook my head. "What are the chances Sunstreaker will give up his search in a week's time?"

"You insisted he search, knowing him." Optimus frowned now. "Chances of him just giving up on the search...are low, I'm afraid. At least, chances of him returning willingly or happily are low."

"Have you _met _the mech?" I raised an eyebrow. "Chances of him returning willingly or happily are more or less non-existent, and we both know it."

Optimus shot me a semi-amused look. "He may not return for quite some time, if at all. However, his internal communications and long distance communications have been repaired, so if we need to contact him, we can." He nodded at more people as they boarded and handed him the tickets or flashed their passes.

"And he'll come back when Sides joins us. I just... I don't know." I shook my head. "I feel like I might have done the wrong thing, letting him go, but at the same time, I knew I had to."

"Is there not a human saying about letting something go?" He pulled away from the curb smoothly, and I could recognize my stop approaching.

I eyed the overhead walkway, connecting two large malls on either side of the street. "If you love something, let it go. If it comes back to you, it's yours." _Or something like that._I frowned and patted his shoulder again, as he slowed, pulling up to my stop. "That's just it, Optimus, even if he did come back, it wouldn't be for me." I reached down and gave him a hug, taking comfort in his calming presence, before heading off the bus. "See you later."

"Hmmm."

I entered the store quickly, ducking through the massive crowd. A tiny part of me felt at home here. This is the life I was used to. This is what I'd grown up to. Normal humans, puttering around their normal, naive lives, not knowing what's going on around them.

I paused, causing people to grumble as they walked around me. _It wasn't too long ago, I was one of them._ I looked around at what used to be my life. I didn't feel out of place here, but I think that's only because I didn't let myself recall I wasn't human. They didn't know, I didn't _want_ to know...

"Phone." I steeled myself and marched forward, looking for a 'Source' store, or some form of electronics store. I was going to get myself a cell phone and a home phone.

Another upside to being considered part of the Autobots was that I now had access to a small portion of a government account set up for them. Not that I was going to use it. I _did_ have money set up in my own name, after all. Emergency funds of a sort, which would more than cover the phones, and then some.

I marched into the nearest electronics store and browsed through the phones, grabbing a decent one that was on sale, and a cute little yellow cell phone. Of course, I _had_ to choose it because it reminded me of a certain little yellow Ferrari. Staring down at it, I bit my lip.

_I'll never really let him go if I keep reminding myself of him._ Getting a random idea, I shook my head at the clerk. "Do you have one in silver?" He showed me the phones, and I smiled at one. It had little rivets on the cover that reminded me of Sideswipe's soon-to-be form. "Yeah, I'll take this one."

It was a little more expensive than I would have liked, but I got them, and headed off to the food court. A long talk with Ratchet, before I left, informed me I could drink water, but that it was the only fluid that wouldn't damage my internal systems or make me sick. I couldn't eat anymore, either. So I grabbed a bottle of water, and sat at a table in the foot court, playing with the new cell phone, programming any important numbers in that I could remember off the top of my head, and downloading the image of a beautiful red Porsche.

And no, I'm not cocky and vain like that. I just didn't want Corvettes, Ferraris or Lamborghinis, and Porsches were the next most popular choice. Then I sat back, staring down at the phone, and cursing the fact they'd 'accidentally' broken my old one. I had no doubt it was more a concern of 'non-secure' channels, or some crap like that, that they refused to give it back. Oh well, frag 'em!

"Bella?"

Looking up, I blinked in surprise, feeling my eyes widen.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Deja vu._

_Not that I've lived this scene before. I was just both surprised and not to see the person standing in front of me. Somehow...I knew he'd gotten caught up in all this Cybertronian war mess. I should have expected it, really. That doesn't mean I'm not surprised to see him actually standing before me._

_After all, this is a big city. Out of all the things he could have possibly wanted to do, _today_ of all days, how odd is it he's here, now?_

_Either way, I'm going to enjoy this. I invited him to sit, and I'm going to sit and talk to him. He seemed nice enough last time we met, and it _is_ my fault he got caught up in all this, after all. The least I can do is help him to understand just what it _is_ he got caught up in._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : August 21, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	32. Vacation, Part 2

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : For the next few chapters, there's going to be few to no diary entries, just because the chapters are long enough without them. Especially since I'll be including a POV for Sunstreaker now, so readers can keep caught up with his own progress.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

_Silver, 2009 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Concept._ He paused outside another Chevrolet dealer, looking over the cars. This one advertised the model Bumblebee had chosen, and it wasn't a bad looking car, but for the most part, he tried not to cringe. These...were not his brother's style.

Correction, they weren't _his_ style. If Sideswipe felt he had no other choice... Considering the Concept model didn't even seem to be a concept yet, there wasn't a chance he could be a silver Corvette. Not that model, or year, anyways.

Perhaps that was why Bella had told him to keep an eye out for _anything_ out of the ordinary, and not for that specific make and model.

_Bella..._ His optics narrowed as a pressure rose in his chest. _She told me to look for him. I'm doing just that._ His optics roamed over the cars as he struggled to ignore the pressure, but when he found nothing remotely interesting, he drove off, taking to over fifty miles over the speed limit. _Slagging femme! Why am I letting her get to me?_

_**'Yo, Skids to Sunny-boy.'**_

_**'Don't call me that, if you value whatever's left of your looks.'**_ Sunstreaker glared at the road ahead of him, speeding around a Honda Civic and cutting off a Mercedes Benz. _**'What do you want?'**_

_**'Ya's ordered us ta report if we's saw or heard anything off, bro.'**_

He slid onto the side of the road gracefully, turning his full attention to the communications link, which told him the strain Skids was feeling. It was unusual for the bot to feel any strain, so that in itself caused Sunstreaker's own spark to increase energon output. _**'And?'**_

_**'We's spotted 'Cade in da city. He's makin' rounds. Didn't sees da femme though.'**_

There was a low growl as he remembered the way Barricade had gone after the femme. His optics looked to the sign before him, and he mentally calculated how far he'd driven from Tranquility. Chances were he wouldn't get back quickly, but if he headed back now...

He paused, engine nearly stalling. _What am I thinking? The fragging femme _told_ me to leave! She told me to find Sides!_ His spark squeezed near painfully. _No, she told me to _look for _him. She's...my charge. But I never _asked_ for her as a charge! _It felt like there were two halves to his spark, each pulling in a different direction, though he tried to ignore it. _Optimus trusts me. She depends on me. It's my duty._

Sideswipe...

His spark hummed hotly, and he vented sharply, trying with all his might to ignore the pain in his spark. _**'Watch over the femme. If she appears to be in **_**any**_** danger, you get her out of there, do you understand me? Inform me if any Decepticon makes a move-no...'**_ He paused, wheels twitching and vents inhaling deeply. _**'Inform me of **_**any**_** change to her status.'**_

_**'You's not the boss bot.'**_ Mudflap's whine had Sunstreaker's optics narrowing.

_**'No, but boss bot would agree with me on this. Don't believe me, ask him yourself. She is **_**my**_** charge, no matter my temporary absense. If she is in danger, inform me. If she in injured, inform me. If she returns to base without a scratch, inform me.'**_

There was silence on the other end of the link, and for a moment, he wasn't sure if they'd even heard him, or were going to listen. Then he growled as he picked up on a menal snicker.

_**'Yo... Sunny's got it bad!'**_

_**'I have orders not to harm humans. That doesn't cover you two slaggers. And Optimus asked why I didn't trust her safety with you.'**_ He was being harsh, he knew, but this wasn't a joking matter, and he knew deep down he should have known better than to trust the twins to take him seriously.

Again the line was silent for a long moment. _**'Dat hurt, man!'**_

_**'Then take this seriously!'**_

_**'Alright, alright. We's tell ya if da femme's sitch changes. Scout's honor.'**_

_**'Bumblebee's got honor?'**_ Obviously, Skids was joking, but his twin didn't seem to pick up on that much.

_**'Wrong scout, glitch-brain!'**_

_**'Hey!'**_

Sunstreaker tuned them out, hesitating at the next town sign. He stared at it, spark torn. He had no reason to believe Sideswipe was that close. If he was, Sunny would have been able to sense him, obviously, so he had to still be off-world. Not to mention, Bella predicted his arrival in two years time. Sideswipe was also a strong warrior. _If_ he was on Earth, surely he could get to the others...

But something in his spark told him otherwise. Something in his spark pulled him until he shifted back into gear, slipped seamlessly back onto the highway, and sped off towards the next town. He couldn't give up. Not yet. Not if Bella was being watched. _She_ was protected. _Sideswipe_ wasn't.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

I smiled at Jesse Foster, watching as he smiled back, sipping on his pop. Just like Rika and Maggie, he knew I was now a Cybertronian, but also just like them, he didn't seem to have as much trouble with it. Sure, they were awkward for a while, and needed a little time to adjust, but once they had, it was fine. He liked to say, when I refused to believe his easy acceptance, that I was still me on the inside. I was still Isabella.

It was...startling, really. I knew I was me, I just didn't feel like it, but this really made me think. I was still me. I still liked pranks. I was still snarky, and sometimes fairly witty. I would still get in your face, if you annoyed me.

"What's it like?" He leaned forward a little, playing with my phone. He'd put his number on it, as well as Will's. It seemed the two of them hit it off instantly, and Ironhide was almost doubling as his guardian, too. Will was apparently in the mall somewhere, doing some shopping for his little girl. Late birthday gifts and all that. "I mean, can you eat? Sleep? Dream? Drink?"

"Eat, no. At least, not solid food." I picked up a fry off his plate and grimaced at it. He snatched it out of my hand with a smirk and shoved it into his mouth. "Eww, you know, I can actually see Sunny's point."

"I'm telling him you called him that."

"Snitch!" I hissed, grinning as he chuckled with a hand over his mouth. "He already knows." I gave him a smug look, before sighing. "Anyways... I can drink water or energon, but that's it. I can sleep, but the schedule is _really_ tight. When I get better at figuring out my own, uh, processor, Ratchet's going to teach me override codes, but that only works for a few days, before the body needs rest so bad, we're forced into a temporary coma known as stasis lock, where we're more or less helpless and numb to the outside world." I paused. "I'm spending too much time around Ratchet."

He smirked. "Do you dream?"

I frowned thoughtfully, tapping my bottle of water. "Honestly? I don't...really know. I haven't since transforming, but I never thought to ask Ratchet that."

"Do you think the Autobots dream?" Now he seemed to sober. "I wonder what they'd dream of." He'd taken to them all too quickly, amazed and awed at the thought of sentient alien life existing on Earth.

My frown deepened and my spark hummed uncomfortably. "Mostly nothing good, I'd bet." He looked at me in confusion, and I shook my head. "They've been at war for God-only-knows how long, Jesse." He no longer worked at the local precinct, all things considered, so we were more or less on a first name basis now. He'd been upped to more of a private detective status, working for the military. "They've seen family and friends die. Soldiers under their command. Their formerly beautiful, peaceful world shattered and destroyed beyond any shadow of recognition."

"Oh wow. I knew it was bad, but..."

"They literally gave up their whole world to save the universe. Now they're fighting to protect ours." I shook the water around lightly, in my bottle.

"What about this Sunstreaker dude? I didn't see any Ferraris outside."

Again that pang of hurt and worry hit me, but I pushed it back. "I made him leave to look for his twin."

"Wait. You're his charge. You're in danger of-" He looked around discreetly and leaned forawrd. "Decepticon attacks, and he _left_ you?" He lowered his tone to a quiet hiss. "I can understand his worry, if his brother's out there somewhere-"

"No, you don't." I leaned forward as well, feeling my eyes narrow as I stared at him. "They're _twins_. Two Autobots sprouted from the same original shard of a spark. They are two parts of a whole with such a close bond that if anything bad happens to one, the other will feel it too. If one dies, so will the other." _I think. In fact, I'm pretty sure._ "If one's hurt, the other one might literally go insane from the pain, terror and rage they feel. Sunstreaker is in physical _agony_ without his brother, to the point it's putting dangerous strain on his heart!"

"Okay, okay!" Jesse held up his hands. "I'm sorry I insulted him. I didn't mean it. I just... Wait, if it's so dangerous, wouldn't their medic do something about it?"

I ducked my head now, clenching my hands a little tighter around the bottle, and listening to the plastic crackle in protest. "He doesn't know. Sunstreaker begged me not to tell him. There's nothing he can do, anyways, but restrain the bot, and that would only make things worse."

"Bella?"

I looked over, smiling a little as Will approached. "Hey, uh, Major."

He smiled slightly and pulled up a chair. It was odd seeing him dressed casually, and I couldn't push the thought aside. I'd only ever seen him in fatigues and formal dress. "Will's fine. Anyways, I told Jesse I'd meet him at the food court, didn't expect to see you here, too." He stole a fry from Jesse's plate, causing the red head to level a mock warning glare at him.

I shrugged. "I killed my cordless. Left it on the charger while I was gone." I grabbed and hefted my bag. "Needed to do a little phone shopping. You know me. I'm the typical girl. It's a statistical impossibility to live without a phone." I then showed him my new cell.

He frowned thoughtfully. "I thought you were using a cell Sunstreaker gave you? One with a secure channel?" He raised an eyebrow.

I raised one back. "It's nice to finally know the real reason you didn't give me my old phone back." He lowered his head in defeat and I patted his arm reassuringly. "I _just_ got this one. Sunstreaker's...went with him. I don't know how his systems work, but didn't want to strain them." At his confused look, I set about re-explaining about having Sunstreaker leave to find his brother.

And of course, his reaction to Jesse's imput about being sick was to be expected.

"Ratchet doesn't know? You know he's gonna kill you, right?" Will eyed Jesse, who took a big bite of a super greasy burger. "And he's gonna kill you, revive you and kill you again." He pointed to the former officer.

"What he doesn't know won't hurt us." I stuck my tongue out a little and giggled as Will shook his head with a smile and Jesse actually snickered slightly around his mouthful. "Anyways, you'll never _guess_ the conversation I overheard on my way to the mall." I grinned and gently pushed Jesse's hands away from his mouth as he went for another bite. "You'll wanna wait until _after_ I tell you."

"Is it that bad?"

"Two old ladies were imagining Optimus Prime's holoform in a thong." I deadpanned easily, giving them a dry look. I abruptly had to duck and cover when Jesse began choking on the fry he'd dared to eat, nearly spitting it at me in the process of trying to breathe. "Primus, man, swallow, don't spit!"

Will cracked up and patted Foster hard on the back, even as I took mock cover behind the table, causing both men to crack up even worse.

"It's not my fault he brings out the sixteen-year-old nymphos out in eighty-plus-year-old bodies!" I hissed, causing Jesse to snort painfully, his face bright red.

Will's face went absolutely _white_, and he shuddered with a look of horror and disgust. "And _there_ goes any chance of a nice, relaxing week home with my wife. Thank you, Bella."

"Just get her to parade around in nothing but a thong." His eyes glazed, and mine widened. "Oh Jesus, I gave you ideas. I should...go, and let you two...yeah. I'm gonna go." I shook my head. "Very bad mental images." Then I paused, giving Will, who was laughing, a thoughtful look. "Actually, the images aren't that bad. She's a beautiful woman."

Jesse's eyes widened, and Will's followed suit, both men looking at me in shock.

I pointed at them both, meeting their eyes dead seriously. "I don't swing that way, don't get any _more_ ideas, but yeah, she's pretty." I shook my head and stood. "Anyways, I gotta get going." I laughed a little and shook my head. "I've got the 'I'm too Sexy' song stuck in my head, with the accompanying image of Optimus prime strutting the catwalk, and need to go find a brick wall to beat it out. See you later!"

"Hey wait, do you need a ride home?" Will was standing, and Jesse grabbed his burger before following suit.

I shook my head. "I'm perfectly happy to take the bus."

"Then at least let me get Ironhide to call Optimus for you." Will smirked then. "With any luck, the next ones imagining him in a thong won't be old enough to be your grandmother."

I grinned then. "Nah, with my luck, it'd be a couple of men." They made faces and I laughed. "You'd better hurry then. I'm getting on the next two-eighteen whether it's Optimus or not." I waved at them. "It was nice to have a good, normal conversation. Take care guys."

I headed back through the mall, casting longing glances at the people around me. I passed the place where I'd gotten the Autobot optic contact lenses and paused wistfully. I couldn't even use them now, if I wanted to. My body wouldn't handle it, probably. They were just going to sit at home, going to waste. Then I thought to my nice t-shirts. I didn't even know what the government had done to _them_.

Sighing, I shook my head. I waved at Misty in the window, who gave me an odd look before turning away. It struck home once more, as I lowered my hand and began walking again, that this world wasn't the same one I'd grown up in. Considering Autobots were real here, they wouldn't have a fandom for me to get contacts from. That would mean I probably never entered that store. I wouldn't know this Misty, and she wouldn't know me.

It made me wonder... What else had changed?

* * *

**(?)**

_"The femme's left the safety of the Autobots."_ Red optics narrowed at a single online, enraged and pained, blue optic. _"She's left the safety of her allies. Initial scans also report she's turned Cybertronian herself. Her guardian, I believe his designation was...Sunstreaker?"_ A flash of a smirk lit up the darkness when the bot gave a pained cry, online optic dimming in agony. _"Ah yes... He's all alone. He's left her. We'll get them both, bring them here. We'll use the femme to breed a new army and finally put an end to the pathetic Auto-scum, and as for Sunstreaker... Well, I have _many_ fun plans for him."_

The bot snarled and thrashed, but the restraints against his wrists lit up, and electic bolts ran over his frail frame. Energon began to leak from injured areas, and ripped and torn cables sparked angrily. The bot onlined his working optic and snarled at the Decepticon with a rage that flooded his blue optics violet, then to straight red.

_"Yes, feel that rage. Feels good, doesn't it. Do you know what feels better?"_ The con moved forward, and grasped at the limp chest plates of the protoform, pulling on one until the bot beneath his hands trembled and screamed in agony, and there was a sickening crack. _"Ahh, yes... Much better." _With a chuckle, the Decepticon pulled back. _"Now... To get a status report on the lone, vulnerable femme..."_

He turned and stalked from the room, ignoring the convulsing bot behind him, despite the screams of blinding rage and agony. He laughed, listening to the noise, and smirked at the other 'Cons as he passed. He wandered down corridors and up hallways, until he ended up outside. Once there, he transformed and flew off into the night sky.

All the while, he was completely ignorant of the hateful looks some bots shot him, and more hesitant looks they shot to the room where the prisoner continued to scream.

* * *

**Written** : August 21, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	33. Vacation, Part 3

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

He growled softly to himself, his entire frame shaking with frustration, and so much more. He stared down over the edge of the vast cliff in his human holoform, trying not to lose hope. _He's alive. He's online, and functional, and out there, somewhere._ Yet, his more rational side was throwing the doubt at him in near-to-impossible-to-ignore waves. _I've searched five human cities in two days. I've bypassed my need for recharge, only to recharge outside, in the middle of a storm, because I had no fragging choice!_

His holographic eyes shot to his form, and he grimaced. To most, he'd still be breath-takingly stunning, but _he_ could see the tiny, minute scratches all over his form. He could see the mud that had caked in along his rims and ridges, and he didn't have the proper tools to get rid of it at the moment.

_Bella would wash me._ He cringed then, his processor going back to the femme. She hadn't seemed happy to get rid of him, but he could see that she cared for Sideswipe...almost as much as he did. It was...endearing. She knew his twin came first, and she accepted it. She _encouraged_ it, almost.

His spark softened towards her a little more. She'd been through so much. Initially, he'd been forced to be her guardian, her knowledge making her a key figure. If it hadn't been for that... He never would have given her a chance.

Venting softly, he looked back out over the nearly barren landscape. The sun was just setting, and he couldn't really find it in himself to ignore the beauty of the alien scene before him. Cybertron had been all metal and crystal. There were energon rivers, but no 'mud' or 'dust' or 'dirt'. It was a part of the planet he missed. However, it also never had the colorful sunsets and rises like this planet had.

He'd searched the internet briefly, and had found himself shocked at the images of beauty these humans could come up with. Raging waterfalls that roared powerfully in some places, and gently trickled in others. Alien creatures that radiated gentleness, 'grazing' in large, flowering fields. HE wasn't sure he found organic creatures of _any_ kind 'gentle' or 'beautiful, especially with their oiliness, but something about the images seemed to say 'peaceful'.

His eyes narrowed briefly, and he vented again, before his holographic form made a show of walking around and getting into his vehicle self. There were no other humans around, but he had to practice and get used to using his holoform, for the sake of blending in. The last thing he wanted to do was to put his species in danger, because of a slip up.

_It would be my luck, too._

Pulling away from the cliff, he took one last lingering look at the sun's decent, before turning and driving off slowly. He picked up speed as he headed on to the next town, vaguely hoping the reason for the lack of twins' snarky comments was because they'd managed to..._discourage_ Barricade from making a move on the femme.

It would be just like the femme to send him away, only to get captured. With that thought in mind, Sunstreaker hesitated a little. He pulled off the road, googling a local map to find out how far in what direction he'd gone. He...didn't want to move too far, despite how his spark pulled, so he turned and headed in another direction.

He had a week. He was going to make the very most of that time. He didn't head back to Tranquility. Instead, he turned and headed east, towards another city. He'd work in a circle and slowly make his way out. He'd decide whether or not to return when the week was up. He just hoped the femme would be fine without him.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

"Now _this_ is what I'm talking about." Tanning was apparently no longer possible, unless I coached the nanites in my body to change my skintone for me, but hell if I knew how. Still, I laid back at the massive beach in a small yellow bikini, letting the sun warm me. The day was nice, warm, but with a cool breeze, and it fluttered through my hair. My eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, and I smiled as I sipped lightly on a bottle of water. I wasn't thirsty, but I did it for the sake of habit. "God, it's beautiful today!"

There was a light laugh, and I smiled even more, raising an eyebrow as I glanced over at Maggie, Mikeala and Rika, all splayed out around me on their own towels. "What? Something funny about that?" Rika smirked at me, and Mikeala nodded from her place.

"I know what you mean. No need to run or hide. No big bots stumbling around, or staring at us like we're the most interesting things since sliced bread. No bots staring at our breasts-"

"Oh dear lord!" Maggie snorted loudly and cracked up, causing us all to turn to her. She was doubled up, laughing her ass off until she began to pant heavily. "That reminds me! Apparently our 'mammary glands' are more interesting than we thought. I was..." She took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. "I was talking to Ratchet, asking him a bunch of questions about Cybertronians when he just..." She snorted with the force of her laughter, sending the rest of us into giggle fits. "He... He... He just reached out and poked me in the breast!"

"Are you _serious_?" I cackled next to Rika, curling up a little at the mental image of fascination on Ratchet's face as he pokes Maggie in the chest.

"He's all like 'I understand that was probably inappropriate of me'." She giggled and shook her head. Adjusting her white one-piece, she brushed her hair over her shoulders, and rolled onto her stomach, still shivering with laughter. "'But I was merely curious. I have never met a species who feeds their young with milk in such a manner'. Then, I was glaring at him, and he's all like... 'I did not do it for perverted purposes, as most males of your species would. I merely did it for scientific curiosity'. Then he asks if he can examine them even more thoroughly!"

"What a pervert! Ratchet, of all bots!" Mikeala hiccuped on a giggle. "Geez, that explains why he kept staring at me with such interest. Ugh! Now I'm never gonna be able to look at him the same way again!" Her own hair was up in a high ponytail, hanging over her shoulder, and she wore a pink and purple bikini that showed so much skin, it was almost scandalous. "I mean, geez! I'd expect something like that from... I dunno. Bumblebee? Or maybe that new guy, Sunstreaker!"

I looked away and winced, my eyes drifting over the coastline. _Please be okay. I just want you to _be here_ this time!_

"So, are we gonna sit here burning all day, or are we gonna swim?" Rika leaned up and stretched, moaning a little as her back popped.

I followed her lead, followed by the other girls. It was Mikeala who answered, looking at me oddly. "_Can_ you swim, Bella?" She'd only just found out about my transformation, apparently. We could sit and talk like the best of friends, but whenever anyone brought up anything relating to my change -in this case, something I might no longer be able to do, as the water might or might not have a negative effect on my newly metallic systems- she tended to tense up and stumble over herself, awkwardly.

I looked longingly at the water a moment, imagining when I used to free dive, and swim across rivers and back just for the exercise. Then I shook my head sadly, smiling at the girls. "No. Not anymore. Regular water would be fine, as long as I didn't stay in too long or go too deep. Only in this form though." I looked at my arms, frowning. "Apparently this faux skin protects against water damage." Then I paused. "Plus, a giant metal being doing the backstroke across the ocean _might_ be a little noticeable."

We all snickered at the mental image, and I was suddenly struck with the song 'Swimming, swimming, in my swimming pool. When days are hot, when days are cool, in my swimming pool' stuck in my head, and I nearly face planted in the sand.

"But the ocean?" Maggie asked, sobering, tilted her head a little, as she tied her hair back in a ponytail.

Shaking my head, I sighed. "The salt would cause a lot of damage very quickly." Which was surprising, considering the Decepticons had gone down in the ocean, after Megatron, and had all come back up again. Or maybe those were suicide bots who later died of a severe case of 'The Rust'. I snorted as I could hear Scalpel reporting it. _God, that sounds like an STD!_ I cracked up, explaining the thought to the girls, who all laughed with me. It took us a few moments to calm down again, letting everything sink in.

"Oh wow." Mikeala's eyes darkened a little. "So you can't really swim then." She looked at the ocean hesitantly.

I shrugged a little, before leaning back. "It's fine, trust me. This is a vacation, and I'm gonna make the most of it." I stretched on my towel, and sighed a little, before closing my eyes. "Go for a swim, but if you splash me, I'm gonna drop kick you into the deep end." My mock warning got a couple of small laughs, before I heard a couple of the girls moving.

It was quiet murmurs after that, but I picked up on every one of them. Maggie was going to stay on the beach with me. Born and raised in Australia, apparently, she was used to hotter temperatures. This wasn't _quite_ hot enough to warrant a swim, for her. Rika and Mikeala nearly took off for the water.

While they were gone, I heard Maggie rustling around, and peeked an eye open. "What're you doing?"

She looked at me, before holding up Mikeala's towel. "They're gonna be dripping. Just thought I'd move their towels my way a little more."

"A _little_ salt isn't gonna hurt me." _I hope._ "Just as long as they don't bathe me in it." Still, I got up and stretched, before helping her move the towels and their bags a little further away. Then we sat back down, relaxing.

Or rather...trying to.

There was an odd burning sensation in the side of my head, and try as I might, I couldn't ignore it. It wasn't from the sun, this was a more unpleasant 'being gawked at' stare. I tried to push it off as some perv getting really bad ideas, but the stare just _wouldn't _let up. Soon, the burning had spread to my entire face, and my body tensed almost of it's own will.

Slowly, I blinked my eyes open. I glanced around briefly, but didn't notice anything out of the ordinary. Pulling off my sunglasses, I sat up and took a better look around.

"Something wrong?" Maggie looked up from where she was sprawled on her stomach.

"I...don't know." I frowned deeply, eyeing every person who walked past, or looked our way. That's how I spotted _him._ Not the _him_ I was hoping to see, but an odd, alarmingly dangerous looking young man. "I think... I think we'd better be alert." I felt nervous saying that, because the more rational part of my mind kept telling me I was being paranoid. Still, his look set my nerves on edge.

Besides... _Rationally, _the bots didn't exist, and look where I was.

"Why? What's wrong?" She sat up, instantly alert.

I just stared at the man, my eyes narrowing. He _might_ have been considered good looking, if he just didn't scream 'bad boy' in all the worst possible ways. He had long white hair -_White_ hair? Really?- and dark eyes. He was tall, lean, and muscular, dressed all in shades of black and silver, with a pitch black trench coat swirling around his feet. That in itself was odd, it was hot enough without such a hot jacket on. Then there was his look, a fascination mixed with hatred and something even darker. Something cold, wet, _evil._

The shiver was impossible to ignore, but as the crowd around him parted more, I felt my heart stop. "Get the girls." My voice was low, but he straightened anyways, looking more alert. He knew what I was saying. I just _knew_ it.

"B-"

"Go!" I snapped at her, before nearly diving for my purse, carrying my phone. Unfortunately, when I pulled it out, I could have cried when I realized there was no signal. "God-fragging-dammit!" This was a public beach, so there _had_ to be a signal here normally. Even as Maggie jumped up and dashed off, I felt cold as ice. There was only one reasonable explanation...

I got to my feet quickly, spinning to the man. He still stood there, but was smirking now. The car behind him seemed to revv, either angrily or excitedly, I just don't know. And frankly, to be honest, I didn't give a flying defrag!

The moment I realized who that was, I was off, running to where the girls were dashing to the sore. "_Decepticon!_" I let my scream wash over the clueless people around us, and ignored the odd glances in favor of the looks of horror dawning on all their faces. "_Run!_"

Some small, nagging part of my mind knew others wouldn't move. The people who didn't know Transformers wouldn't move. They'd think I was insane, they'd think it was a prank, but they'd stay where they were, and if _he_ wanted us bad enough, he'd hit and kill every human in his way to get to us.

It killed me to leave them there, but short of transforming myself -and trust me, I wanted to, but I was too panicked to focus- there was quite literally nothing I could d to help them.

I pushed on, though. I grabbed Rika's arm, and Mikeala and Maggie grabbed hands, and we _ran!_ We dashed across the beach for our lives, listening to people complain as we ruined sand castles, tripped over sunbathers, and bumped into people. Even as we listened, there was an angry rev, and the complaints turned into screams.

My eyes burned. There was no mistaking the sound of bodies hitting something hard. Screamers went flying, bodies landing everywhere, and the horror kept knawing at me, until my own legs shook so bad, they almost couldn't support me. Slowly, I fell to the back of the group, until it was Rika dragging me, with Mikeala and Maggie screaming encouragements.

All I could think about where the bodies being left behind. Innocent people. Innocent men and women with families. All caught up in a war that had _nothing_ to do with them.

The tears burned my cheeks on the way down, and I could barely breathe. I was more than aware I was dragging the girls down, and the 'Con was getting closer. That was the _only_ thing that kept me running right then and there.

"Bella, come on!"

"He's catching up!"

"Hurry! Hurry up!"

I dashed through a parking lot, and we broke into two groups, weaving through the parked cars and dodging vehicles quickly leaving the parking lot. There was an unmistakeable sound of transforming behind us, and I raced forward, dragging Rika into a set of caves.

The nice thing about _this_ particular beach was that it was set with so many caves you couldn't keep count of. It was like swiss cheese. Each cave had at least two entrances and two exits. Some were fifty feet long, others even longer, but most were maybe a dozen feet long.

No cars could fit through, though. This was a human only place, and we took full advantage of it.

I didn't even pay attention to where we were going. I let my panic and instinct to survive just take over, blinding running down caves, entering one, exitng another, until I couldn't move any further. There I collapsed, shaking, and I felt Rika drop behind me, panting noisily with a look as terrified as I felt.

"Where are we?" There was almost no sound to her voice, and her face was as white as a sheet.

Currently, we were hiding in a longer cave, towards the far exit. We both cringed and gasped, hearing the enraged scream echoing around us, and we huddled together, my arms wrapped around Rika's. We huddled there, shaking, and in my case crying. There was no light on either side of us.

It was about then I realized... I didn't _know_ where we were. I didn't know if this cave even _had_ an exit. There _were_ a few in the area like that. Shaking my head, I trembled. I vibrated and breathed shakily the pain causing the tears to fall endlessly. "I... I don't know."

"Where are the others?"

Did she mean the other Autobots? Or Maggie and Mikeala? Either way... "I don't know." God, when did we split up? Where were the girls?

"Are we gonna make it out of here?" She raised her head, staring at me with such wide eyes.

I hated how innocent she looked, and how weak and vulnerable I felt. I'd lost my phone on the run. A lot of good it'd do us in a cave with some kind of signal jamming going on, anyways. Their phones wouldn't work either. I wasn't a twin that I had some internal bond to communicate through. I didn't even have access to their internal comms.

"I...don't...know."

We were alone... There was a deranged Decepticon out there, hunting us... We had no way of calling for help...

Then the ground shook violently, knocking rocks loose from the ceiling. Rika yelped, and I cried out, covering her head with my arms. We curled up against the wall, jumping as large boulders hit the ground around us, and I hissed as one hit my arm, painfully. As the shaking subsided, I pulled my shaking arms back, and looked around. Even in the faint light of the cave, I could see the energon leaking from the wound.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Well...crap!_

_We're alone, with a deranged Decepticon out there, hunting us. We have no way of calling for help, and neither of us knows our position well enough to try moving forward. _

_And to top it all off?_

_That slagger's gonna bring the entire cave down on us, if he keeps up with whatever he's doing!_

_...I want my mommy!..._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : August 26, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	34. Vacation, Part 4

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note**

**Author: ***Sees Ratchet's new form and giggles hysterically*

**Passing child**: *Points to Ratchet's alt. mode* MINTY!

**Author**: Ratchet, kiss your dignity goodbye! *laughs hysterically, before pausing a moment* What's that noise?

**Sunstreaker**: What? *Listens* Oh, that? That's just Ironhide laughing his aft off in the background.

**Author: ***Laughs her own aft off*

**Ratchet:** *Growls*

**Sunstreaker**: Yeah yeah, very scary Dr. Minty.

**Ironhide**: *Laughs even harder*

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

Sunstreaker snarled lowly as he hit yet _another _town. There as no sign of his brother, or of any other Autobots at all, actually. However, that didn't mean he was alone. He conveniently ignored the single, faint Decepticon energy signature following him. He'd picked up on it earlier, and kept moving, watching, waiting.

But what really grated on his nerves was that the damn 'Con was doing _nothing_. It kept following him at just such a distance, it's signal was degraded enough to keep him from identifying who it was, but close enough, it _had_ to be aware he'd picked up on it.

It was...a couple of days since he left the city, and the longer he remained away, the easier he found it. His initial panic over leaving his charge was fading. The others hadn't called him, so things were fine. Knowing that, he moved his search outward, further from the city, and pushed himself less, recharging as he needed it, and not waiting until the most critical moments.

Funnily enough, this is what he'd been doing when he _met_ Isabella Cameron.

He'd been idling in some nameless town that meant nothing to him, looking for any sign of his species, whether friend or foe, he just didn't care. After all, if there was a Decepticon, chances were there'd be an Autobot nearby, to protect the slimy species of the planet. That's what he'd been betting on.

Instead, he found the _one_ human femme bearing the Autobot insignia. That had caught his initial attention. He thought she'd been adopted like a dog, a pet, and stamped with ownership. He'd thought to follow her back to the others, only to find out she was a 'fangirl' of a 'fandom' that didn't even slagging exist!

A long, twisted story later, and he found himself hopelessly roped into helping a pathetic squishy avoid the others, only for her to _become_ one of his species and unintentionally reunite him with said others.

_She's done a lot._ A small part of his processor mused quietly. _She helped you find the others. She knows your brother's coming here, and she intends to help you reunite._ His spark took unimaginable reassurance in that fact. If it had just been words, that would have been one thing, but with her knowledge, her sincere looks... He knew he had more of an ally in her than in anyone else. Somehow he just knew she understood. Maybe not all, but more than the others. _Somehow_, she understood his bond to Sideswipe, and she cared. _She saved your spark, too._

He growled lowly at the reminder. _I didn't ask her to._

_Regardless, she did. She put her own existance in jepardy in order to give you the seconds of recovery time you needed to finish Barricade._ Not offline him, like he'd wanted to. A sensor blip had worried him, and to protect his -at the time- unwanted charge, he'd needed to flee, but he'd beaten the Decepticon down.

Optics blinked and he turned at a light, only to skid into a tight parking spot with a muffled curse.

_Slag! The signal's gone!_ _Frag it all to the deepest pits! The slagging femme distracted me! She's not even _here_, and she's being a nuisance!_ His sensors immediately went out, looking for the ping, and his spark pulsed rapidly. A Decepticon in the open was one he could deal with. One hiding was something all together different.

After all, you can't hit what you can't see.

Then, it felt like his spark stalled all together, and new anxiety filtered through him as an emergency message came through his internal links. It was made all the worse when he realized it wasn't the twins contacting him.

It was Optimus himself.

_**'Sunstreaker, come in. We have a situation.'**_ There was no mistaking the tension in the bot's voice. _**'Do you read?'**_

_**'I read, Prime.'**_ He answered before he even thought about it, and cursed again. If he had any chance of finding his brother, something told him it had just gone out the window. He took a deep, shuddering breath, trying to control the pain, fear, weakness and anger rolling through him.

_**'Sideways has managed to separate the femmes at Tranquility Royal Beach, and have cornered Bella and Rika in a massive cavern system. He is now attempting to collapse the caves in on them.'**_

Sunstreaker had to look up what Prime meant by a 'cavern system' and he paused as he found several images and extensive information on it. On one hand, it looked like an amazing adventure, if you liked dust, bugs, darkness, damp air, sharp rocks, and extremely deadly, _blind_ falls. On the other, it looked like what he'd often imagined the Pit to look like.

And the femmes were _there_?

Not that he cared about Rika. He tolerated her, but if she was stupid enough to let herself get cornered, it would be her own fault she got offlined. However, Bella was there as well. _His_ charge was there. If she transformed, she'd kill her best friend, and very likely offline herself. The rock walls would be too deep to just crumble away, and could crush her massive form.

In her smaller form, she was even more vulnerable, and if they couldn't get out-

_**'We're closing in, but it looks like Barricade and Dead End are going to be issues. Location status.'**_

_**'Too far away to make it back in a single Earth day, even at top speed.'**_ Once again, his response was automatic, and he growled dangerously, before squealing out of his spot, cutting off vehicles as he pulled a sharp U-turn and took off. He ignored the honks and sped off at his full speed, zooming past other vehicles. There was the sound of a police siren, just a normal cop, and in any other situation, he might have been amused at how quickly he left them eating his dust.

_**'Understood.'**_ Prime vented, his tension seemingly rising. _**'We'll get them free, but it might be best to return now. If the Decepticons are making a move on our charges, it's not wise to have our forces spread so thin. Isabella's initial concerns for the safety of our allies and their families might be all too valid.'**_

_**'Already on my way.'**_ His optics narrowed, and he honestly didn't know if he was more annoyed at Bella for getting herself into trouble, or himself, for dropping everything and running back to her at a moment's notice. It wasn't like him, especially not when Sideswipe was out there.

But then, maybe that was the key.

He couldn't sense Sides. If he'd been on the planet, Sunstreaker should have been able to pick up on _something_. That was his only comfort. His twin just hadn't arrived yet. That's all.

_You'd better be okay, brother, or Primus help me..._

_

* * *

_

**(Bella's POV)**

My breathing felt like it'd never even out. It didn't help when cold, bone-chilling laughter filled the cave, right before the ground shook and more of the roof caved in on us. On the upside, I found a small niche to stick Rika in. On the downside, it was only big enough for her.

My back hurt, the worst of my injuries, but I had streaks of energon all over from where I'd been hit by falling rocks. I think adrenaline from the terror was a major part of why I wasn't feeling a lot of the pain. I felt some, but somewhere in the back of my mind, a thought kept tugging at me, I wasn't feeling as much as I should have been.

"Where are they?" Rika's voice was a trembling whisper, and she held her hands wrapped tightly around a cut in her thigh. Bikinis weren't very protective. "The Autobots, I mean. Shouldn't... Shouldn't they be here by now?"

"They're coming."

She grimaced. "Now _so_ isn't the time for the comment I just thought of."

I choked on a quiet, almost incredulous laugh, and shook my head. "No. No, it really isn't." I looked down the tunnel. My eyes had sharpened, apparently glowing in the darkness of the tunnel, and now I had an odd night vision. Everything was tinted blue-greens and greens, and I could see the rocks and debris lining the way we'd come. I couldn't see the Decepticon, but I knew he was out there.

And, as if on cue, the ground shook again. "Nuisance femmes!" There was a growl. "Stay where you are, it doesn't bother me. It only makes it easier to offline you both!" The ground shook once more, and I couldn't help but cry out as another rock hit me in the back.

I could _feel_ my 'skin' tearing and the rock tumbling down along my spine, before it hit the ground. I could also _feel_ the energon running down my back.

"We're gonna die."

"No." I shot Rika a look, a near desperate plan filling my mind. I didn't wanna go out there, but staying here was worse. The others weren't here yet, but where _were_ they? Were they even coming after us? Taking a deep breath, I eyed the tunnel once more. I knew, deep in the back of my mind, I had to do something. For Rika's sake, if not my own.

I wasn't a big fighter. I didn't have access to weapons, but I was Cybertronian. If either of us stood even the slightest chance, it was me!

So...why couldn't I move?

_I have to do this!_ My legs shook so violently, I couldn't even stand. I was kneeling on the ground, and I tried to get my feet under me, only to stumble as the ground shook once more.

"Bella! Be careful!" I could feel Rika's grip on my arm, and I finally tore my gaze from the path to her. I couldn't do it! The tears poured down my cheeks, and I whimpered in terror and defeat. I wanted to go out there, distract him, but I couldn't even _stand_! How was it I was brave when dealing with Barricade, but not now, when it was needed more than ever? How was Sideways any different?

Once more everything shook, and a loud sound made me look up. I spotted a large boulder coming lose. "Rika!" I shoved her back hard, listening to her connect with the wall in her little niche, before jumping to the side and rolling, covering my head with my arms as the rock fell, smashing into the ground where I'd just been crouching. As soon as the rumbling stopped, I lifted my head, eyes wide, and spun to the hole.

The entrance was covered by the boulder, and I felt my jaw drop. "Rika!" I was on my feet and running over. I shoved against the boulder, only to hiss as something pulled painfully in my shoulder. "Rika?" I didn't care about being quiet anymore. I couldn't hear her! There was no room for her to get out! "Rika, answer me!" The ground shook, and my head spun down the hall. I felt my entire body tingling with pain, fear and anger. _Because of me... So many people were _killed_ and _hurt_ because of me! Why do they want me?_

"Bella!" Her voice was faint, and I could hear slow shifting and muffled pounding. "I...I can't...get out!"

"I know, are you okay?" My voice shook dangerously, breaking at the edge of the question, and I trembled. _Please, please, please..._

There was silence a moment, and I sucked in a shaky breath. "I think so!" I could have collapsed and ended up leaning heavily against the rock, my eyes falling closed in relief. "N-Nothing seems to be broken, and I think... I think there's f-fresh air coming in." The rock didn't conform directly to the shape of the cave entrance, so yeah, that was entirely believable. "I c-c-can't really move, though." A bout of nervous laughter.

"I can imagine." I mumbled quietly, turning my narrowing eyes on the tunnel. Knowing she was safe eased my anxiety, but now I was getting mad. Where _were_ the Autobots? "I'll be right back, stay here!"

"Where the hell am I gonna go?"

I paused at her squeal, and felt my lips twitch, before I stepped forward. I had the strength back in my legs. To be honest, that felt like the only strength I had, but the more I thought, the more angry I was getting. I stomped down the hall, my new spark humming with ever increasing tension. My body was getting more and more rigid, and the urge to transform was sitting there, right at the back of my mind. I felt like I was on a hair trigger.

_Maggie and Mikeala are God-only-knows where. Rika's blocked in. Countless innocent people were hurt and killed._ That was already weighing heavily on my shoulders, but I used the anguish to push me harder. A large part of my mind kept screaming it was all _my_ fault, for not learning more, not being so alert. Instead of listening to that, I told myself firmly it was all _his_ fault. If he hadn't been spying on us, if he hadn't shown up... _It's our freakin' vacation! Why _now_ of all time?_

I could see a light now, and stopped cold, slamming my eyes shut with a pained hiss. The light burned my eyes, but I could feel them changing, shifting, and when I tested them, my sight was back to normal. The light still gave me a headache, especially with the shadows the debris tossed all over the place. I climbed over rocks and boulders, spotting a grey metallic leg as I moved.

_You... You... _"You slagging, pit-spawned son of an over-used snowblower!" I began running as fast as I could, triggering my transformation as I hit the entrance of the cave. I moved clumsily, stumbling forward as my parts shifted and I grew. I hit something hard and pushed, growling as my parts shifted to where they belonged. "Murderous piece of waste scrap metal!" Without even waiting to get my bearings, I lashed out with my hand.

**SMACK!**

As my eyes adjusted and my legs stabilized, I watched as Sideways wheeled back a little, looking surprisingly stunned. I didn't blame him. I looked from my hand to his face and back in shock, part of me not really believing I'd just bitch slapped a Decepticon. Even as his optics narrowed, I felt mine do the same, and I lashed out again.

Now keep in mind, I never took Cybertronian martial arts or anything like that. I wasn't a big time Jet Judo fighter, and I didn't have weapons. What I _did_ know was we were giant robots. We had cables and cords and wires and nuts and bolts.

Since I doubted sacking a giant alien, metallic being would work...

I lashed out quickly and gripped tubings heading up his neck. Without even hesitating or giving it thought, I ripped and pulled with all my strength, listening as he screamed. Before I could grab more, however, I felt my arm being grabbed from another angle. I spun, growling, and spotted Barricade. My eyes narrowed at him, and I kicked before thinking.

**CLANG!**

He snarled and winced, stepping back, his legs shaking. His grip loosened as he doubled over and clutched at his groin plating, and I pulled back. It hit me then I wasn't facing _one_ Decepticon. Even as my optics widened at the sight of a red one that I didn't recognize, it hit me then... I was outnumbered and outclassed. Suddenly, my bravado faded. I stepped back as a fresh wave of near blinding terror ran through me.

"What's wrong, femme? Lost your nerve already?" Sideways snarled as he held the injury I'd given him. Energon leaked down his throat, and his optics seemed dimmer, but only slightly.

Barricade growled, and his optics flashed. "Come with us peacefully. Do yourself a favor."

"Yeah because you'd treat me like a princess if I agreed, right?" I nearly snarled at him. "I'm _really_ going to believe you, too. And Megatron's gonna pole dance on a skyscraper in a tutu!" They gave me an odd look, pausing again, and the red bot behind them gave off a snort bark of laughter. "Sarcasm. Try it some day." I might have been scared, but I wasn't about to go easy on them.

Barricade tilted his head a little, almost frighteningly thoughful. Sideways just snarled, and Dead End smirked behind them. "Fiesty for a femme. You know the Autobots." It wasn't a question.

"I know you too, _Runner_." Well, that was a half truth. I knew fanfictions tended to refer to him as Barricade, or 'Runner', a former racer who tended to break rules for fun. Or...something like that. I could have been wrong about the name, I'd read it in fanfictions. More than one, but I wasn't sure if it was _his _name. Well, not until he winced and gave me an odd look, anyways.

More than anything, I knew he was a Decepticon that a lot of people tended to paint as _possibly_ being good. My eyes shot to Sideways. "You, I don't really know about. Just your name, Sideways, you're an aft-hole, and the fact you supposedly played both Autobot and Decepticon for some time, pitting the sides against each other for Unicron. Well, that was the the cartoon something like...twenty years ago or so." Both bots reeled, Barricade more than Sideways. Finally, I glanced at the bot behind them and narrowed my eyes. "I don't...know you."

He smirked even bigger. "Dead End."

"Oh!" I snapped my fingers, my eyes widening. "You're the lazy bot who prefers to sit back and let everyone else do the hard work!" His smirk faded, even as Sideways smirked back at him.

"What is this about playing _both_ sides, Sideways?" Barricade wasn't smirking. In fact, he turned on Sideways with a shocking glare. "Pitting sides against each other?" His head shot to me. "Explain!"

"Hey! I don't know the details!" I held up my hands, noting how the 'Cons were currently more interested in what I was saying, than kidnapping me. "I just... I mean, I wikied him-" I paused as they shot me confused looks. "Um, Wikipedia. It's an online function to search information, like googling, but it's more a single site. Like an online dictionary or encyclopedia. It said that Sideways was a kind of spy for both sides, working for Unicron. He pitted sides against each other, lying to both to help fuel the war." I shrugged a little.

"I've never even _met_ Unicron!" Sideways snarled at me, his optics flashing and his body rigid. "Don't you dare try to portray me as a traitor!"

"Silence!" Barricade's optics landed on me. "I want to see this information for myself." He stepped towards me, and I leaned back, suddenly nervous again.

"You're not the leader!" Sideways grabbed his arm, hauling him back. "Starscream decides what we do with the femme! Not you!"

"You dare stop me? You're only making things worse for yourself." Barricade was frowning deeply. "If what she says is true, it means no one on the Decepticon side can be trusted!" He nearly ripped his arm out of Sideways' grip. "I _will_ see this for myself!"

"Then maybe we should take this to a place where the Autobots won't be able to find the femme." Dead End finally piped in, refusing to even look at me. He stepped forward, shooting wary looks between the bots, and a more hesitant one my way. "It's only a matter of time before they get past our detours and distractions. We'll be outnumbered."

That's what I was hoping on, but even as they spoke up, I felt that tiny hope growing inside me, finally start dying out again. The window of opportunity was closing, and no one was there to rush to my aid. My mind flashed to Rika, and I hoped and _prayed_ they'd find her. Even as the bots turned to me, none of them confident or cocky now -just from a little information, too- I knew I was done. I wouldn't stand a chance against them.

I sagged a little, recognizing defeat. I was screwed. Completely and utterly screwed.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Oh Primus. Frag me sideways, no pun intended, I am so unbelievably screwed. How could I be so stupid? Okay, okay, easy enough answer. I'm me. What was I thinking, tangling with Sideways? Especially with no bots in sight to help me. Sunny's gonna have my aft, when he finds out._

_Well...if he even cares._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : August 27, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	35. Vacation Over

Disclaimer: I don't own it.

**Note** : I don't know anything about Epps' family, so I'm making it up as I go along. Also, if you wanna know how I imagine any of the bots' human holoforms, I'm going to give you actor names, and/or the character I'm associating them with for various reasons. LOL Some are based off actors/characters because they suit to me, and others are just based off models with the look I imagine. Any I don't name, I don't have a visual for,

Optimus Prime = Misha Collins as 'Castiel'.

Barricade = Ian Summerhaulder (I might have butchered his last name) as 'Damon Salvatore'.

Sunstreaker = ...Think of a kinder, blonder, younger, less evil looking 'Damon Salvatore'. I don't have a name for the face I see on him. -.-'

Ratchet = David Conrad as 'Jim Clancy'.

Prowl = ...whoever plays Isabella Swan's dad in Twilight. 'Charlie Swan'. (If and when I bring him in, but I probably will MUCH later on)

Ironhide = ...I just picture him as strong, all in black, muscular, with a bushy moustache, bald head, and lots'a scars down the one side of his face, with cold blue eyes.

Hope you enjoy the visuals as much as I did. XD

* * *

**(With The Autobots, Normal POV)**

Optimus growled. They'd finally realized that the Barricade and Dead End they were dealing with were nothing more than complex holograms. The energy signatures, the weapons, the explosions were all real, yet somehow kept missing his soldiers. Both human _and_ Cybertronian. By the time they figured out the ruse, and destroyed what was hopefully the only complex hologram producer, it was far too late, and they arrived at the caves only to find three Decepticons off in the distance, with a fourth Cybertronian reading with them.

The human soldiers had rushed into the caves, only to find Rika screaming for Bella to answer her, and no sign of Bella herself. Then it had taken several of the soldiers, and Ironhide's towing capacity to move the boulder blocking her cave. To say the femme was less than pleased would be an understatement.

"How could you? They were _holograms_!" Her eyes were huge, and she snapped at Ratchet when he used his holographic form to attempt to tend to the scratches and cuts she suffered. "Ow! Watch it, butter fingers!"

Pulling back with a huff, Ratchet shot her a look. "If you do not watch your tone with me, youngling, you will be tending to your own injuries." The bot stood rigidly, about as tense and disappointed with the lacking personelle retrieval as everyone else, and the human form was mimicking that tenseness. "I do not have the patience to deal with your lack of patience at the moment."

"When _do _you have patience?" Maggie groaned a little, a towel wrapped tightly around her body and her hair dripping down her back. She shot Mikeala a look, the other girl refusing to react. "And that's the _last_ time I'm swimming to one of the bouys with you. I thought I was gonna drown!"

"Well, it worked, didn't it?" Mikeala frowned at the girl, looking more tired than annoyed. She sighed, curling up in Sam's arms, and shaking her head. "I can't believe they got her. I mean, what was she thinking, facing them alone?"

"We didn't _know_ she was alone." Rika glared up at Prime. "What _took_ you guys so long? Oh-" She shook her head with a groan of annoyance, hissing and glaring at Ratchet as he bound the injury by her knee. "That's right, you were playing with shadows."

"We will retrieve her." Optimus' tone was distracted. He glanced around. He could see flakes of metal and rubber where Sideways must have been pounding on the small mountain, and he thanked Primus the femme wasn't more badly injured. He frowned, his optics landing on a rather annoyed looking Ironhide, and guilty looking twins, venting at their look more than anything. _**'It wasn't your fault.'**_ He sent to them alone, watching as their heads snapped up towards him immediately, in sync.

_**'But we's were s'posta watch her.'**_

_**'Yeah, we promised Sunny.'**_

_**'It is **_**not**_** your fault.'**_ He added more emphasis, making his voice stronger, more stern, so they'd understand. _**'No one could have predicted this attack. Bella warned us the humans might be targeted, and now we know this for sure. Our main task now is to see to our human allies, and plan for a retrieval mission.'**_

_**'If Sunny lets us keep our sparks that long.'**_ Skids shook his head with a huff. _**'Bot won't admit it, but he's got a thing for the femme.'**_

Mudflap nodded, venting worriedly. _**'Cute little femme like that? I don't blames him, man. Ya can see it in his optics when he looks at her.'**_

_**'He won't admit it, though.**_

_**'Of course.'**_

_**'Which is why we must **_**focus**_** on retrieving her before they can do irreperable harm.'**_ The faint tickle of amusement was nearly invisible in his optics, but Optimus raised an optic ridge, ever the strong leader. _**'I am assigning you, Skids, as personal guardian to Mikeala Banes, for the time being."**_ Jazz or some other, more mature bot would have been a better choice, but at the moment, with the numbers they had, he had to make do._** "Bumblebee cannot afford to be strained between two human charges, unfortunately. Mudflap, you will take Maggie.'**_

_**'Yo, what's about Ri-Ri?'**_

Optimus turned to Ratchet, opening a link to include him in the conversation. _**'Ratchet will be given guardianship over Rika, for the time being.'**_ In any other situation, he might have laughed at the black glower he was given for that. _**'I apologize, old friend, but we need to gather our human allies and their families, and bring them to the base as soon as possible. Until this is done, we cannot afford to let any of them travel without Autobot guidance. This was too close. Rika could easily have been permanently offlined.'**_

The glower faded, and Ratchet nodded silently. _**'Understood. Her injuries are mostly superficial. Nothing serious beyond some bruising to her back, which I am guessing she got when she reported Bella pushed her further into the small cavern she was hiding in. I estimate full recovery within an Earth week.'**_

_**'That is the first good news we've received. Mikeala? Maggie?'**_

_**'Minor hypothermia. Their waters were not meant for humans to spend a long period of time swimming. Especially at this time of year. No injuries, but Maggie's scans show a small amount of water in her lungs, which should take a day or two to clear, with a minor treatment of antibiotics to prevent an infection.'**_

Optimus nodded silently before venting again. "Alright. First thing we need to do is to retrieve Samuel and his family, along with the Lennox family. Epps, I do not suppose your family knows about us?" He did recall the man being one of the few soldiers involved who didn't bring his family in with the others. He wasn't questioning why. It was a relief not to have even more humans knowing about them, with all the risks involved.

"Nah, most of my family's pretty spread around. Mom and Dad are vacationing in Hawaii, and my sister and her family live in LA."

Optimus nodded, before turning to Mikeala.

She shook her head. "Dad doesn't know anything, and I want it to stay that way. He's finally clean and living a decent, real life. If I have to come live at the base, so be it." She looked more resigned than anything. "Just leave him out of it."

He nodded again, turning his gaze to Sam. "I'm sorry, Samuel, but your family knows. They will be in danger as well. It would be best if we can bring them to the base, until we can find a more permanent decision."

"Really? I mean, seriously? They _just_ lost a massive battle, and they're causing issues, already? I was just looking into colleges!" Mikeala pulled back and gave him a look of both incredulous annoyance and understanding. He sighed. "F-Fine, but _you're_ the one whose gonna tell them! I'm _not_ opening that can of worms!"

"Worms?" Optimus tilted his head, and several of the humans trembled slightly with muffled laughter. "Another human saying?" At Sam's sigh and nod, he turned to Maggie.

She shook her head. "My family's in Australia and knows nothing about this. I moved to the U.S. for schooling, then was planning to move home for work." She shrugged a little. "As long as I call them once a week, and visit once every six months _at least_, we're good."

He nodded again, before finally turning his optics to Rika, who only shook her head. She didn't voice her reasons why, or even meet his optics for more than a second. She just stared into space, dully, shaking her head. "Alright. We will sort this out back at the base." Venting sharply, he grimaced. "We must come up with a rescue plan first and foremost." _And I have to inform Sunstreaker of our failure to rescue his charge. Primus help me._

_

* * *

_

**(Bella's POV)**

Out of the three of them, I was damn lucky I got stuck with Barricade. I sure as hell wasn't going with Sideways. I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him, and Dead End didn't even offer, thankfully. When I asked if I could transform into my vehicle mode and drive with them -my only other chance, really- they laughed and I knew I was done for. Sideways wanted me to go with him, but I'd rather make out with The Fallen after Prime ripped his face off, frankly.

"You are silent, femme."

I glanced to the dash, frowning. Truthfully, he'd been quiet himself, his holoform staring broodily at the road ahead of him. "Is that what your age would translate to, if you were human? I thought you were closer to Bumblebee's age."

There was a growl, and the holographic form's eyes flashed darkly. "Do _not_ compare me to the bug!" He all but snarled. The car was silent again, but I could see the thoughtful look on his face. "I am... Would the humans really take me seriously if I appeared as a boy barely entering adulthood?" The form flickered, fading briefly. When it returned, the man I was faced with was almost shockingly beautiful. "Is this better?" He raised an unimpressed eyebrow.

"Damn!" I shook my head, catching his attention. "Too bad you're a total dick, if you were a good guy, you'd have all the femmes all over you." Not that _I_ was interested. He was beautiful, but then again, most of the Cybertronian alternate forms were beautiful. On the other hand, their _real_ forms? Barricade's was more intimidating than cute or 'pretty'.

I wasn't sure if the flash of emotion across his face was amusement or not, it was gone again too quickly. He had pitch black hair that hung in a shaggy style similar to that of Sunstreaker, only not _quite_ as shaggy. His jaw was strong and chiseled, more squared than Sunstreaker's -why am I comparing them?- but he had the youth of a young man, roughly my age, maybe a little older. He was lean, looked like he'd be tall when he stood, but he had a fit body, what I could see of it through his uniform. What got me were his eyes, though.

They weren't black. Or red. Or any variant of the two together.

They were a cold, icy blue.

"Like what you see?" He smirked, his voice almost seductive as he stared ahead. His smirk didn't last long, however, as a silver Audi R8 cut him off. He growled. "Stupid, arrogant Sideways." Slanting me a quick glance, he spun back forward again. "Did you mean what you said? About him being a traitor? And trust me, you don't want to lie to _me_, femme."

I shuddered a little at the dark promise, sinking against the door. Barricade had been surprisingly docile and accepting of me in my presence. Cold, demanding, but not as mean or nasty as the others. There was almost a thoughtfulness about him, like...like he was always contemplating something. "Well, he was in the cartoons that were made over twenty years ago. He, uh...didn't live long enough for anyone to know in the second movie. Sideswipe actually kills him within the first like..fifteen minutes."

He frowned deeply. "Sideswipe... How can he manage that when we have him locked up?"

I blinked a moment, a cold sense of dread filling me. "When you... What?" _It couldn't be. If he was on Earth, Sunny would have sensed him, found him by now. He's lying._ _He has to be_. "He's not even on Earth yet, how could you possibly have him-" The slow look he sent me stopped me cold. "Sunstreaker would have sensed him."

"If he was strong enough to send a signal out, perhaps. But enough of that slagging waste of metal. Tell me something..." He shot me a look. There was no smirking, no joking, no condescending, just...blankness. "How does it feel to know there's been a spy on the Autobot side?" I had no idea what he was talking about, and my look must have shown it, because he sped up to smack almost pointedly into Sideways' ass.

"Jesus! Enough with the kissing ass!" I hissed, gripping the edge of the seat tightly, even as the Audi revved it's engine audibly, honking it's horn angrily. "I wouldn't know! He wasn't there when I was, okay? And unlike the Decepticons, the Autobots trust each other with their lives!" I shot him a glare, feeling my heart twitch nervously. "How else do you think the Autobots have survived and _always_ managed to win in the end? Let _me_ ask _you_ something, Barricade." His eyes narrowed, but he didn't say a word. He didnt have to. The angry revving of his engine was warning enough, but not _quite_ enough to silence me. "How does it feel to know you're on the wrong side?"

"What?" He nearly barked that single word, spinning to glare at me. "The _wrong_ side?"

"Think about it. Decepticons are evil, and it's a universal truth that good _always_ wins over evil. You're destined to lose the war, I've _seen_ it." I watched his optics narrow dangerously, the way every inch of the car seemed to tense, and he gripped the steering wheel tightly, his holographic knuckles turning white. "I've _seen_ Megatron die. I've _seen _him come back, and bring the Fallen to Earth, only for _The Fallen_ to die."

Now his eyes widened. "Impossible! The Fallen is the oldest Decepticon! He's a former _Prime_! No one can defeat the master!"

"Optimus will. He did it in our movies, and he'll do it here."

"Not if you tell us how."

It was my turn to sneer. Despite the brave front I think he knew I was putting on, I _knew_ I'd die before I told them jack. "No, I won't, and I think you know that. How does it feel, Barricade, _Runner_, to know that no matter what kind of good work you do, you'll only ever receive insincere thanks? You fail in a mission, everyone calls you a moron, bags on you about it, and may even try to kill you." His eyes turned to the front, and he glanced away from me as a red...well, I'm pretty sure the car was alien and not an Earth model. Or Dead End wanted to be several different things, and butchered his alt form trying to incorporate them all into it. The form worked for him, but was hideous and indescribable to me. "Even when you _do_ good work, Starscream will just take credit for it. Or brush it off."

"So what? You want me to change sides? That's ridiculous!" He was all but snarling.

"Is it? Then why is Jetfire currently settling in, cosying up with the Autobots? Why did I see another Decepticon switch sides in the second movie?" I wasn't about to name who. Chances were, he'd just as soon spill it all to Screamer, who'd offline Wheelie before the bot got a chance to get away. Speaking of Wheelie, I'd have to try and find him, if I was allowed to move around at all. Chances were... I wouldn't be. I'd be locked up and made a prisoner in every sense of the word.

We'd been driving for what felt like forever. Barricade fell silent after my question, and I watched cities come and go. I had no idea where we were now, we were moving so fast, other cars looked like they were standing still, which made street signs all but a nameless blur. All I knew was we were exiting the desert, entering forested roads, and heading towards one of the largest mountain ranges I'd ever seen.

"Jetfire... I thought he was offlined." Barricade's eyes were narrowed with some undescribable emotion I couldn't name. "The reports stated he left to follow the Allspark, then simply disappeared. No reports were ever received..."

"He _was_ offline. The Autobots used a shard of the Allspark to revive him, and brought him to their base for repairs." Maybe I shouldn't have said anything about Allspark shards, or base or Jetfire for that matter, but none of it was specific information. None of it would tell them _where_ the base was, who all was there at any given time, or anything like that.

"They brought a _Decepticon_ to the base? As a _guest_?"

I shrugged, catching his attention. "He helped in the movie, giving his life for Optimus'. He proved himself an ally there, and I told Prime that much. I don't know if he's a _guest_ or a prisoner, that much they didn't tell me, but last I heard, he was being given the tour and Ratchet was treating any injuries he had." I sighed and shook my head, staring at him warily. I had no idea what to make of this mech, but I _wanted_, more than anything, for him to be a good bot deep down. "Do you know... No, of course you wouldn't." I frowned. "A lot of people in my world wrote you as a good bot deep down in your spark. You supposedly hide it with a rougher exterior, but you're not a true, sparkless Decepticon."

There was a low growl, and before I could blink, my arm was seized in a painful grip that had me crying out. With a shock, I spun to find Barricade glaring at me with a look of loathing I'd never imagined he could have, but...there was something else there, too. Was it desperation? Fear? I couldn't name it. Not with my mind focusing only on the rage he was displaying at me right then and there. "Don't _dare_ to presume to know me, Auto-sleaze!" He hissed, and I winced as he twisted my arm even more. "I'm a Decepticon through and through! I've killed before, and I'll kill again, it's _what I am!_" He then almost recoiled from me, holographic eyes widening slightly, and a new expression forming on his face. It _might_ have been shock tinged with guilt, but before I could be sure, his expression turned min-numbingly cold, and he just stared, giving me a cold look, before twisting forward.

I couldn't help but stare in shock. Any hope I'd had of saving him, converting him, just dropped to the faintest spark in an endless darkness. If he was capable of being that cold, and if he _wanted_ to be, maybe everyone was wrong about him. Slowly, I pressed my back against the door, the silence almost deafening. My breathing picked up, that damned burning was back in my eyes, and I stared blindly ahead at the looming mountains.

* * *

_What did I get myself into?_

_Dear Diary,_

_Screamer was all too happy to see me when we arrived. Did I ever mention how creepy he was, looking like a giant, malformed dorito, and sounding like a complete and total lunatic? Well, he was. Why did the Decepticons even follow him? It just didn't make sense. They were all smart bots, and half the crap out of Screamer's mouth was just that. Crap. He had designs on power. That's all there was to it. Frag everyone else._

_Did the 'Cons care so little about themselves, that they'd follow this lunatic, quite possibly to their own deaths?_

_What was I saying? Of course they would. After all, they did so in the second movie, didn't they?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Author's Note** : I don't own the name 'Runner'. I _have_ actually read it in more than one fiction, but I don't remember which ones. I don't know if it's a term given to him by a fan, or if it's actually something about him I just didn't know. It's all just a guess, as is his 'family history'. I also don't own the 'malformed dorito' thing, **Primesbaby007** has used that one multiple times.

**GoldenCompass90** : Longer chapters? Well, there's a bit of an issue with that. All my chapters are the same length, with the exception of up to 5kb (about 700 words?), and they're already written up to chapter 83 so far. LOL And these are the longest chapters I've ever written for a story, that I know of. I'm already rambling in places, if I made them longer, I'd probably ramble on a _lot_ worse.

**Written** : August 29, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	36. Sideswipe

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Cells. I hate cells. I hate them with a passion. I hate Screamer, Sideways and Scalpel even more. Hell, I'd say I hated all Cybertronians with their names starting with 'S', except that would also include a bunch of bots that I don't hate, and well...yeah. No. I just hate Decepticons in general. And what I hate even more than the triple S threat here in 'Con land? The fact they'd had the creepy-as-hell foresight to create a humanoid room._

_Yeah, we got to the base, and I was 'escorted' kicking and screaming to a large room, where I was strapped down on a human-sized berth, and then cut into and briefly examined by a really determined little crab-monster._

_There was one thing I found confusing, however. Once I'd been restrained, they accessed this weird little port on my arm that I didn't even know I _had_! Barricade hooked up to me, and I could tell he was basically reliving my life when my memories flashed behind my eyelids. I tried to fight it, to block him out, but without knowing how, I couldn't do jack._

_The worst part of it all? He knew _everything_ in a matter of seconds. Who the other Decepticon to turn was. Where the base was. Who the human allies and their families were. The weak spots of the Autobots._

_So... Why, when he knew all this, didn't he look triumphant? He spoke to Scalpel in their language, and the little bug got to work on the port thing, severing wires in a way that had me screaming in agony and begging for mercy. Then, I was forced to remain in human form, and almost dragged to my little prison. 'Cade? He didn't say one word, or look me in the eye the entire time._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**(Bella's POV)**

"Something wrong, dear femme?" Starscream tilted his head to a creepy angle, staring at me intently, and I almost squirmed in disgust before his stare. I'd been forced to transform up, and was once again 'escorted' to the evil, crazy dorito-of-doom, in what looked like some kind of throne room. Then, he just _stared_ at me. "You look nervous. I don't want you to be nervous. I _want_ you to...join us."

I blinked, then raised an eyebrow. _And I want you to disappear into thin air, or be run over repeatedly by Optimus Prime. I guess we're both having frownie days. _"I'd rather drink raw energon crystals-" Ratchet told me they were really harmful and agonizingly acidic on the systems without processing. Couldn't be much worse then the pain radiating up my arm right now, let me tell you. "And burn out my own spark with a blow torch."

Barricade stood in the shadows. I could feel him watching me, but he'd remained oddly silent the entire time. Where was his goading? His cold indifference? Why did he look, once again, like he was contemplating something? He hadn't shown me that cold, murderous look since I arrived. Maybe he was psychotic, like Starscream? Or maybe what he'd seen had done something to him.

Optics narrowed, and Starscream straightened. "What if I made you a deal?"

"I don't make deals with power-hungry morons!" Snapping probably wasn't a good idea, but I was getting more and more frustrated. "What's with you evil losers? You catch a good guy, then try to persuade them to join you. We _all_ know it's a stupid, time consuming move, so do us all a favor, and stop wasting my time, already." I folded my arms over my chest, hissing sharply as my one wrist ached harshly.

He snapped his fingers, optics narrowing, and I heard a cry. Spinning to the shadows at the back corner of the room, I watched Sideways happily drag forward a mech. At least I think it was a mech. I wasn't sure by protoform alone, but the shape didn't look femme. I couldn't identify him, he looked familiar, but it didn't take a genious to realize he was badly beaten and barely alive. Hell, it looked like half his face had been melted off! The half I _could_ make out, stared at me in pain through a single blue optic.

Blue...

_'How can he manage that when we have him locked up?'_ My glance shot to Barricade, but he was too busy watching the newcomer with an odd intensity. I'd expected gloating, or a smug smirk, or a look that pretty much screamed 'See? Told you I'm a 'Con!'.

I felt my eyes widen in horror. _No. It can't be! If... If that's..._ "Let him go!" I spun to Starscream. "I knew you were a sparkless monster! I _knew_ it! Forget _any_ of the fanfictions who portrayed you as misunderstood! You're just a crazy motherboard-defragger!" The terms came easy to me. I'd always been so deeply into the fandom, that I'd gotten used to writing and thinking in Transformers terms. Speaking them came almost naturally now. Sideways' jaw dropped, and I listened to Barricade make an odd whistling noise, his engine clearly choking.

However, the Decepticon leader showed no sign of a reaction, but for a twitch of an optic ridge. "Tell us everything you know, and I'll _consider_ ending his pain." Starscream tossed a casual look Sideways' way and the silver bot grabbed hold of a bunch of cables in the side of the bot's neck, eyeing me with a smirk, before pulling harshly.

My hands slammed over my audios, trying to block out the screams, and I slammed my eyes shut. _Payback's a bitch._ The voice hummed in my mind, the age old saying haunting me more than I thought possible. Before I could process much more, however, my arms were grabbed away, my injured arm twisted painfully. My eyes caught red optics, and I twisted to stare at Barricade with betrayal.

"I suggest you cooperate, femme." He growled lowly, optics flashing. "Unless you want to see Sideswipe here tortured some more. I _did_ tell you we had him, didn't I? Don't worry, we'll be getting his brother soon, too." He smirked, but something in his optics seemed off. Or maybe it was me. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't praying he'd betray the Decepticons and help me. "All thanks to you."

I swallowed, and shook my head. Turning to Sideswipe, I could see him pleading with me, with his optics. But...What was he pleading for? I couldn't understand what he wanted. Did I tell them? Risk everyone losing everything for the time needed for him to heal and the others to find and rescue us? Or did I stay quiet, let them torture him more, and maybe offline him? If they did, it would take out Sunny, too.

"D-D-Don't!" His voice was broken, hoarse, staticky, and he choked, screaming as Sideways twisted the cables he still held, energon spilling out over his hands.

"_Stop it_!" I never imagined myself as good in an interrogation. I could hold my own, if it was just me. I... I didn't care what happened to me, but _him_... Him and Sunstreaker... They had a special bond. I was almost glad Sunny didn't seem to be able to sense him. If what stories said about their bond was true... "Okay! I'll tell you! Just leave him alone!" I knew something was wrong with the port, or 'Screamer' wouldn't be 'asking'. That meant there was a chance still, to at least buy time and distract them.

Now... To figure out what side Barricade was on...

"Take her back to her 'quarters', while I think on things." Starscream stood. "I'm thirsty for a cup of energon." He seemed distracted, and I didn't miss the looks of disgust Dead End and Barricade shot him. However, his words also brought me back to the present, where my own systems were making me aware I was low on energon. I pushed it aside as he eyed Sideswipe with contempt. "Seal the energon cables. He is still an important bargaining chip. I can't afford for his spark to shut down on me. As for the femme, have Scalpel examine her. I want to make sure she doesn't have any tracking devises on her." With that, he turned and stomped out of the room.

Sideways hauled the bot to his feet, which I noticed were regular foot pads. Then he almost tossed the massive bot my way. At the same time, Barricade released my arm, and I raised my hands, crying out in tandem with Sideswipe as our injuries clashed, and his weight nearly brought me to my knees. The injury I'd sustained before, at the base, in my knee, flared up again, and I hissed. The only thing keeping me from crashing was the second set of arms wrapped around us both.

My vision swam with the pain, and my spark pulsed unevenly. I could feel the cool metal of the body against me. _Wait, cool metal? I thought they were warm... Unless their protoforms are naturally cold. _The warmth in his chest soothed me. I could feel an odd vibration, too, and thanked all that was holy his spark was still going. His one arm wrapped awkwardly around my shoulders, and the other hung limply at his side. I struggled to ignore the odd pleasant pulling my heart gave, when his chest rubbed against mine. It was oddly like Sunstreaker's but somehow stronger. Maybe because his spark didn't have as much protection over it as Sunny's?

Immediately, I struggled to take his weight. I could have cried with relief when he stood, only to do a double take when I realized he wasn't _standing_. He was being supported.

By Barricade.

"He's no use to us offline!" The 'Con snapped at Sideways, who just shot him a look before leaving. Then he turned to me. "Help or move. Make a break for it, and I'll shoot him. He's no good if you get away, either." Optics narrowed warninly, and I moved to Sideswipe's other side, almost hesitantly reaching for his dead arm.

When he screamed in pain, I nearly leapt away, the tears building again. "Why are you so full of hate?" I looked right into Barricade's optics, ignoring Dead End who was still standing there. "What happened to you, to make you hate every living being? What happened to you to make you so _cold_?" The tears fell, and I watched as all three mechs stared at me with wide optics. "I know, okay! I know I haven't witnessed your war, but _why_ Decepticons? What made you hate your home world so much, you'd chose to _help_ destroy it? Is power so important it doesn't matter you're destroying innocence, life, peace and happiness?" My voice was getting louder and louder, and I shook more and more, but I couldn't help it. I didn't _understand_!

The bots _seemed so smart._ Well, all but Starscream. So why chose the Decepticon side? Were they really all just evil, or was there something else to it?

"Lord Megatron." Dead End moved forward, grabbing Sideswipe's side, avoiding his arm, and helping to hoist him. "He led us all."

"And if he told you to rip out your mating interfaces, or offline yourselves, would you do it?" My voice softened as I caught an odd look in Sideswipe's single optic. "If he told you to murder family, creators and siblings, would you do it? Femmes? Sparklings who haven't done _anything_ wrong?"

"Are we going, or do we have to drag you as well?" Barricade's voice was a harsh snap, and I winced, letting my head hang. There was just no denying it. I was useless. I couldn't get away, and even if I could, I sure as _hell_ couldn't leave Sideswipe to suffer their wrath! And no matter what I said, nothing would change. They wouldn't suddenly decide to go good, to give up on Megatron, who was bloody _dead_!

"Does it even matter you're not following Megatron, but Starscream, who'd sooner stab you in the back then help protect you?" I kept my head down, sighing as I followed them down the hall. I didn't miss how they kept glancing at me, however, and growled after the tenth time. "This place is a dark, dank flipping maze. There's no place for me to go, _if_ I could get away. Relax already. Besides, unlike _you_, I don't believe in leaving a man behind." There was no missing how all three of their backs went rigid. Catching Barricade's optics, I raised an eyebrow. "Are we _going_?"

He hissed at my mocking tone, and Sideswipe seemed to shake. Pulling my arms around myself, I hugged my chest tightly. I didn't know _anything_ about Scalpel, but what I'd seen in the movie, and what I'd heard were _not_ good. He was even more heartless than the 'Cons, and had ways of torturing other bots that usually broke them. As we entered the medical bay, I began to seriously think about running for my life. Then they laid Sideswipe out on the table, his back arching with agony as they moved his damaged limbs.

I stood in the doorway, looking around the surprisingly well lit medical bay. There was no sign of any Decepticons but the two who'd brought us here. Seeing that, I moved forward, pushing past them to see Sideswipe. "Uh, hey." He looked at me through his good optic, and I winced. "Wow, you look..." I trailed off. I couldn't really believe how horrible he looked, and I shook my head. "What did they do to you?"

"Starscream doesn't like attitude." The look on Dead End's face might have been comical, if I'd been in the mood to laugh. "I'll go get Scalpel." Turning, he left the room.

I cast a look at Barricade, raising an eyebrow. "You gonna turn tail and run, too? Or are you afraid a clueless little femme and badly damaged mech are gonna pull a Houdini and disappear on you?" He raised an optic ridge back, but simply folded his claws over his chest. Shaking my head, I turned away from him. "Hey Sides. Sunny's on Earth, you know."

"I...I know." He coughed, and frowned. At least, I think he frowned. Half his mouth plates looked melted, and didn't move so well. When we got out of here -I stubbornly refused to say 'if'- Ratchet was going to have major reconstructive surgery to do, to get this mech back to normal. "T...They s-severed something...i-inside me. I...I..." He coughed, and I gently rested a hand on the good side of his face.

"Don't speak. Just relax. They'll find us and save us."

"Don't count on it."

The scoff annoyed me so much, I had to pull my hand away from Sideswipe's face before I dug my fingers into his good cheek. Spinning on my heel, I glared at the police bot. "Just because no 'Con would sit by your bedside if you were in agony and treat you like a friend-" His optics narrowed, and he abruptly shook his head, something in his stance warning me.

"Don't act like the Autobots are perfect! They are weak, caring for a pathetic organic species not even equal to our insects!"

"Those 'insects' _killed_ Megatron!" I shouted angrily, stomping my foot.

"Did you seriously just stomp your foot at me?" He looked at me incredulously.

"They _killed_ Blackout! And badly injured Scorponok with _no_ help from the Autobots! Those 'insects' have managed to avoid your every attempt to kill them!" I winced then, and turned away. "Except for the innocent civilians Sideways brutally murdered."

"And he _will_ be reprimanded for that." Barricade's hiss had me glancing at him to see a look of nearly blinding rage. "Don't get me wrong, femme! I have no cares about your birth species, but he was _ordered_ to remain under cover and not to engage out in the open, and he defied orders!"

Shaking my head again, I turned back to Sideswipe and sighed. I looked around nervously, entirely too aware and frightened of what that crazy little 'Con was going to do when he arrived. I had all kinds of horrible ideas crawling around in my head, and I really didn't _want_ or _need_ them there. The only thing I could do, to offer and seek comfort at the same time, was to take Sides' good hand and squeeze slightly, shaking a little.

He locked his good optic on me, and I felt him squeeze my hand back. The look on his face was grim, though, and confused. I watched as his optic dimmed, and I didn't know if he was going into recharge, or in so much pain his system couldn't handle it, or what. After a few minutes, his optic shut, the light fading completely. His hand relaxed, and I'll admit I whimpered. I leaned closer, placing a hand over the melted, burned and broken armor over his chest, feeling the pock marks and dents and breaks. The only comfort I got was that his spark was still warming his chest plates.

_Hang in there Sides. We'll get out of here._ My chest tightened with fear as I felt a hand on my shoulder. _We have to. We just... We need to be strong._ Slowly, I turned my head, my bravado fading again. _But... I can't._ The idea of what they'd put us through was breaking me, just at the thought of it. It didn't help I couldn't do _anything_ to help Sideswipe. "Just kill me and get it over with." The tears burned my eyes and my cheeks alike, as they fell. "I'd rather die then help you, you know. If you have _any_ good in you at all, let him go and kill me."

"He was trying to connect to Sunstreaker. We severed the communications cables, and a special set of cables only twins have, that help strengthen their internal bonds. He can't contact his brother, but he still tries, every day." Barricade's voice was remarkably soft. "_Why_ do you think there is anything redeemable in any of us?"

"Not _any_ of you." I shook my head, turning back to Sideswipe. "Just you, more than any of them, and some say Soundwave, but not many. I think you can be redeemed because I don't think you are insane. I don't think you're a raving lunatic, or pure evil. I think... I think something happened to you, that hurt you deeply." His hand clenched painfully on my shoulder, and I squeaked in pain, trying to move away from the touch. At the sound, however, his hand was up and gone, and I watched his back as he almost stormed out of the room. _Was I wrong?_

_

* * *

_

_Dear Diary,_

_Scalpel's more of a monster than I ever realized. He seemed to get off on every scream, whimper and plead my lips could form. And when I felt like I was beyond pain, he somehow managed to bring it all back. Whenever I felt like I was about to give in to the blissful darkness, more blinding pain brought me crashing back to reality with fresh screams. _

_He didn't really hurt me too badly, I think, but it sure felt like he was. Whatever he was doing, he was definitely a professional at torturing bots._

_I never thought to resist the questioning. I was in so much pain, I couldn't think straight. I didn't resist anything. My only saving grace was that...he didn't ask questions. Then again, he wasn't looking for information. He was just 'examining' me. Just playing with me. Having fun._

_No wonder no one ever wrote _him_ as a possible good guy._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : August 29, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	37. Small Kindnesses

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

**(At the Base, Normal POV)**

Sunstreaker growled as he laid optics on the twins, and wasn't the least bit impressed when they both shrank before his glare. Optics flashed, and he bared dental plates at them, causing the surprisingly somber twins to back off with near lightning speed. Then his optics darted around. He eyed the humans with a new found contempt and loathing, something they seemed to know all too well. The _only_ human he allowed in any sort of physical contact with him was Rika. And only because she seemed to be in near endless pain.

Related or not, he could tell she missed Bella and feared for her safety. There was a bond there. It might not have been anywhere near as strong as his connection to Sideswipe, but they saw each other as sisters. He'd seen it the first time he'd met the second femme, and he knew it the second.

Not that he cared for her, personally, but being near her gave him...something else to think about. Whether it was to snarl at her for getting oily smears on him, if she touched him, or not. At least she was a...distraction. He couldn't very well go after Bella, after all. They had no idea where to begin searching, and Prime wanted them all in the same place right now.

_**'Calm, Sunstreaker. We will need to work together to locate and rescue the femme.'**_

_**'If they'd been watching over her in the first place, like I requested, she never would have been taken!'**_He didn't shout. He didn't need to. The anger was felt over the internal links, and seen in the way his optics kept flashing. _**'I told her I didn't trust them, but I gave them a chance!'**_

_**'They could not get onto the beach unnoticed. They don't have human holographic forms just yet, and the vehicle forms are not registered. It would have drawn too much unwanted attention from the humans-'**_

_**'Slag the humans!'**_ Sunstreaker's head shot around, and he stared through narrowed optics at Prime. _**'We had **_**one**_** femme. **_**One**_** femme who knows **_**everything **_**about us. **_**One**_** femme who was **_**created**_** human. Now the Decepticons have her!'**_ Without another word, he transformed into his Ferrari form, ignoring the longing stares a few of the newer soldiers shot him, and zipped across the tarmac nearly carelessly. He didn't bother hitting the humans, like he wanted, however. He zoomed around them, and hit the path, his spark lurching painfully when he recognized it immediately as the path he'd last taken with Bella herself. _Femme. You just couldn't _wait_ to get into trouble, could you? You encouraged me to leave, then get captured?_ Oh, he was, as the humans would say, pissed as hell!

Optimus watched from the main hangar, arms folded across his massive chest, as the young warrior sped off into the forest. He vented sharply, turning to Ironhide and Ratchet as they approached. "Status."

"The Witwickys have been brought to the island." Ratchet grimaced and rubbed at his head. "The femme Witwicky has quite a set of lungs. I believe next time we need to abduct them from their homes, I will leave it to you." Optics narrowed dangerously.

Ironhide smirked a little, shaking his head. "Sarah Lennox and the sparkling agreed immediately, cursing me for bringing the danger into their lives initially, before packing right away. I believe it may have been the thought of spending more time with Will Lennox that helped sway them. That, and their sparkling's safety, of course." There was a yip, and Ironhide stiffened, glancing over to where a little dog was racing his way. "Oh, slag!" He armed a cannon.

"Ironhide!" Optimus frowned.

"It's not human!" The weapons specialist immediately disarmed himself, before transforming down. _**'Excuse me, Prime. I have no desire to be used as a lubricating post.'**_ Wheels nearly squealed as the truck reversed with a surprising speed, before taking off, causing Will to burst out laughing, and Sarah to shoot him a look of amused confusion.

Mojo stopped with a yip, and watched the truck racing off. Then he yipped again as he was scooped up into arms.

"Bad Mojo!" Sam frowned, and shook his head, looking up at Prime. "Sorry about that. I don't know _what's_ gotten into him!" He looked at the dog again, holding it close. "Bad dog!" Turning, he almost stalked back off to his family with a sigh, handing the dog over to his mom, who was still freaking out.

"I still say you should have let him pee on the bot!" She groused, holding the dog and scratching his head. "Good Mojo!" Sam slapped a hand over his face with a groan as she preened the pup, fixing his collar and then turning to her husband.

Shaking his head, Prime turned his attention back to Ratchet. "Maggie? Glenn? Mikeala?"

"Already taken care of. Mikeala Banes is unpacking her supplies in the medical bay as we speak." Ratchet raised an optic ridge, looking a little more relaxed. "I believe she has promise to be a true apprentice. She is already helping me repair more minor injuries on Jazz's body, and has shown fast learning and quick grasping of many of hte concepts I have fed to her."

"How is Jazz?" Optimus blinked, relaxing as well.

"He woke up yesterday, muttering about dream femmes and Allspark shards." Now Ratchet raised an optic ridge again. "He is still in pain, and there is more work to be done, but he is stable and I estimate return to light duty within several Earth days. I have informed him of the situation and updated him on our status on this planet. He is not pleased, to say the least."

"Unfortunately, there is nothing to be done about that. Now for the hard part." Straightening, Optimus turned his optics to the forest, where he could hear the angry revving of the powerful sports engine. "Saving Bella."

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

I'd been poked, prodded, cut open, sewn back up, and examined in every possible way. Scalpel was having so much fun that apparently he actually _stopped_ my spark, without meaning to. I guess I was supposed to be greatful he could get it going again, but after all that... I kind of wished he hadn't. After muttering about weak femmes, he disappeared, leaving me in agony, and Barricade had shown up to carry me to a new room, an empty room.

That's where I woke up this morning. Was it morning? How was I supposed to know? All I knew was I was in blinding pain and feeling somehow more helpless than before. A quick look around showed I was in some dark room, lying on a large stone berth. Was I supposed to be grateful for this, too?

"You're finally awake. Good. Thought I was gonna sit here all day with nothing to do." The voice was eerily familiar.

Looking down by my feet, I found myself surprised to find Wheelie. I couldn't help but just...stare at him. If Barricade had seen my memories, why was the bot still online? Why was he here, now? "W-W..." My throat closed uncomfortably, and I broke out into coughs that were dry, itchy and painful, bringing tears to my eyes as my body jolted, awakening fresh pain all over.

"Name's Wheelie, toots." He wheeled up the armor on my leg, with what looked like a paintbrush in his hand. "Was just repainting some of your scratches." I just stared at him, and he shrugged. "You were offline. I was bored. Sue me. Would ya rather I left ya a mess? I could scratch you back up again." He put the paintbrush on a towel, before closing a paint can sitting on a flat surface on my hip.

I swallowed painfully, and noticed the way his optics flashed to my face. "W-What are you... W-Why a-a-are you h-here?" I coughed a little more, my body trembling from the pain and effort. Speaking hurt. Just lifting my head the little bit I needed hurt.

"'Cade assigned me to ya, after tellin' me some interesting things. So it's true? I apparently 'join' the Autobots in your other world?" He raised an optic ridge, shooting me a haughty look. "'Cause I can't see it. I'm a proud 'Con."

"Are you?" The more I spoke, the easier it got, but my throat still hurt like a bitch. "S-So you like...being b-b-eaten? E-E-Examined by Scalpel, w-who would...cause you pain for f-fun? Tortured? P-P-Put down?" I knew what it was like for the 'Cons. I saw it in the movies, with Megatron and Starscream. Screamer was a coward. Any idiot could see it. He was greedy and power hungry, and was taking full control of Megatron's absense. Not to mention, most fanfics out there painted a pretty grim life for the Decepticons.

The little bot stared at me a long moment, his look blank. "Somebot's comin' with some energon for ya, girlie. Drink up, Starscream's probably gonna question you later." He grabbed the mini paint can and the brush, after wrapping said brush up in a cloth, and wheeled over to my other hip and dropping them over the edge. "I wouldn't be snarky with him, either. He's got a real temper."

"No s-shit." I sighed painfully, my breath catching as my chest ached sharply.

"Humph." I looked down to see a smirk on Wheelie's features. "Ya got spunk, toots."

"Ya g-g-got an...at...attitude problem, baby b-bot." I muttered back, not even trying to move as he turned and began awkwardly climbing off me. "You k-know...t-they make this...w-wonder-wonderful i-invention...c-called a 'ladder'." I swallowed again, and coughed.

"I know. I just ain't interested in one." His voice echoed up from the edge of my body, before I felt him moving away again. Just then, the door slid open, and I glanced over to see a large black bot moving my way. I couldn't really make him out much, my head hurt, my eyes were blurry, and it was dark. "Oh hey. I was jus' leavin'. Finished repainting her. Have fun."

There was a low growl, and I sighed, shaking my head as much as I could with the pain I was in. "Well, h-h-hello there, Bar-Barricade. Is it b-bad I k-know...y-your g-growls by now?" I wasn't sure if I meant to think that last question or actually ask it. Either way, I was still in too much pain, and felt too heavy to move. "S-So, what did Dr. F-Franke...stein d-do to me? And w-what's D-Dr. Minty gonna...gonna have to do...t-to fix it?"

I watched as he actually paused, optics flashing, before he shook his head. His claws set a cup down on what looked to be a shelf next to me. "Drink." It was a gruff order, and he turned away, leaning against the wall, not bothering to face me.

I looked to the cup. I was feeling hungry, I guess, but I was in pain just lying here. I couldn't even _think_ about moving. "N-No thanks." Besides, if it gave them a hard time...I was all for it!

He shot me an oddly masked look. "Drink, or I'll pour it down your throat."

"And I'll s-spit it back in your f-face." I shot back, feeling my eyes narrow.

"You're in pain." It wasn't a question, and he leaned off the wall. If I could have moved, I probably would have shrank back at the thought he was about to carry through with his threat, as he approached. "Your self-repair systems cannot heal you if you do not feed regularly." He vented, before bending down. I jolted, whimpering a little as my head spun with more pain, and oddly enough, he seemed to pause. He just stared at me, and I blinked rapidly to move the tears, so I could stare back at him.

He shook his head, moving again. I expected him to grab my throat and harshly force the energon down it, but to my complete and utter shock, he lifted my upper body with a gentle claw. Of course, the movement felt like thousands of hot pokers poking at all my most sensitive areas of my body, sending burning painful agony rippling through me, causing me to scream until my raw throat gave out from the force.

The screaming kept up though. I was barely aware of being held to a warm chest, claws holding me in place with a gentleness that seemed odd for a Decepticon. I just knew the pain. All I could feel or think was pain. My body shook wildly with agony, and my vision spun. I...I think I blacked out. I probably should have been terrified in 'Cade's claws. He could have done any number of horrible things to me. However, I didn't even know terror, I was in so much pain.

It felt like forever before I could think again, before the pain fled, and I gasped sharply, feeling the hot trails of tears down my cheeks as I struggled to breathe. My body hurt _so_ badly, and if that was just an examination, I sure as hell wouldn't survive actual torture! Finally it dawned on me I was being cradled to a chest, and I looked up. Even through my blurry eyes, I could make out the red optics staring down at me.

As I steadied and woke up more, my eyes clearing, I watched as he carefully moved to grab the energon, careful not to jostle me. He held the cup to my lips, an almost frighteningly pained look in his optics. Was this Barricade? _The_ Barricade who only a day or two before had twisted my arm painfully, insisting he was a sparkless Decepticon? "Drink." His voice was raw, almost broken, and I could feel him trembling.

I opened my mouth to ask what was wrong, but before I could, he tipped the cup up, and I had no choice but to drink or choke. I drank the energon, the liquid surprisingly soothing on my throat, and closed my eyes, breathing deeply as he moved the cup back.

"You once asked why I chose to become a Decepticon." His optics had hardened, when I looked, but he was looking away. "Her name was Speedster, and she was my sister. She was...offlined in the war. It nearly destroyed me, but Megatron offered me the chance for revenge." His optics flashed.

"An...A-Autobot? No..." I shook my head and hissed, shifting in agony.

"I...thought so." He lowered his head, his own bravado fading. I was surprised to see the pain in his form. This was vulnerability, and not the 'Cade I'd heard about, or even met earlier. "I was convinced it was an Autobot and wanted revenge. It was just...easier to hate than grieve." He snarled lowly, his grip tightening on me, until I whimpered. Then he relaxed his hold on me again. "It still is."

"N..N...Now?" I swallowed, and it came a little easier.

"I know the truth, but it's too late. I am what I am." He stiffened, his face hardening. "I'm a Decepticon."

I shook my head, the action catching his attention. "They'd a-accept you. I'd talk to them f-for you." My body felt warmer, and the pain was fading ever so slightly. Energon really was a miracle cure. "Y-You were lost, confused. You... You m-made mistakes. If you...really wanted to ch-change, they'd a-a-accept you." I was vaguely aware of doing a Frenzy-like impression, but I was too distracted to care.

"I _am_ what I _am_." He emphasised with a glare. "I'm angry, defensive, and prefer to snap at people and take care of myself. I'd probably swipe at them for just looking at me wrong."

"You c-can stay like that. T-They s-swipe at...each other." I wanted to lay flat, but I wasn't looking forward to moving. Then again, there was a part of me that wanted to stand, and demand to see Sideswipe, but I felt numb almost. Well, not exactly. I was in pain, but my body was numb in the sense I was so heavy, I couldn't move. "N-Not to hurt...each other, b-b-but in p-play and mock fighting."

"Why do you trust me? I could be lying to you to infiltrate the Autobots."

"Screamer's a moron." I choked on a laugh, when the shaking hurt like hell, causing me to whimper and stiffen, holding my breath to keep from screaming. Once the pain was gone, I let my eyes fall shut, and relaxed. "He can't...can't act to s-save his pathetic life. He wants my in-information. You k-know it, and d-didn't say a word. You sent Wheelie to me, instead of offlining him. You might be n-nasty at times, but I...I...I d-don't believe you're e-evil."

He carefully lowered me back down, and I cried out, but amazingly, being lowered back down only hurt a fraction of what being lifted up in the first place did. I breathed heavily once he removed his arm, and looked up at him. "W-Why tell me a-a-about her?"

"You... You look...like her." He stared down at me with a hesitancy, and I could only freeze as he drew a claw lightly over my cheek, before stiffening and pulling away. "Like she _would_ have looked, if Starscream hadn't ripped her spark out." With a snarl, he grabbed the cup and spun, leaving the room in a flash.

I gaped on the berth. Had Barricade just opened up to me? He had a _sister_? Was she ever written about, or spoken about on Wikipedia? Why didn't I look into his information more? Wait... The last thing he said really broke my heart and caused me to pause in shock. Starscream, the one currently leading them, and brutally murdered his sister? And he was _following_ him?

Wow, how messed up was that?

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Thank God for little miracles. Someone must have spoken to, or negotiated with Scalpel, because the next time I saw him, he was subdued. There was no torture, Screamer didn't stop by for a 'chat'. If anything, the little medic was careful as he repaired me. Sure, it hurt like hell, but I got the feeling it would have hurt a _lot_ more otherwise._

_I saw more of Wheelie, who repainted me where ever Scalpel scratched the paint. He seemed to get lost in the job, complaining now and then, but otherwise asking me questions about the Autobots. Dead End stopped by, telling me happily how much Sideways hated me. Especially since Barricade had forbidden him to see me, and even Starscream himself had taken to watching the silver Audi more carefully. Barricade...didn't stop by again. _

_I was allowed to see Sideswipe once. They brought him to me, and I was surprised to see he was standing on his own. His face was still horribly messed up, as was his body, but he could _stand._ That had to mean _something_._

_Something was up. I didn't know what. I didn't _care_ to know what. All I knew was I was being treated with dignity, and I wasn't about to complain. Not right now, anyways. I'd take what kindness I could get, and heal as fast as possible, because if this torture taught me anything, it was that we _had_ to get out of here. Now, if I could only convince Wheelie and/or Barricade to _help_._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : Augusut 29, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	38. Breakout

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I haven't been writing on this story as much recently. Don't worry, I _do_ still have my muse. I'm just saying that when we reach like chapter...83 or so, the updates might slow down, since I'll be more or less posting them as I finish them.

I'm glad you guys like it so far. I have to admit, reading over it, some parts seem a _little_ OOC to me, but hopefully not bad enough to hurt the story. :)

* * *

**(A Few Days Later, At the Base, Normal POV)**

Sunstreaker had always been a loner. That much, a lot of people knew about him, thanks to Bella. They knew not to take his attitude personally, it was just who he was. But now, he was colder than before. He glared at Mikeala, who tried offering him a wash once, just to get a snarl, a nasty comment and a pissed off giant robot stomping off like an angry child. Sam tried to offer sincere apologies and sympathies, only for Sunstreaker to give the boy a look of contempt, spit out something in Cybertronian that had Bumblebee taking offence, and turning away, ignoring his presence.

Maggie was outright ignored. Glenn didn't bother to approach the bot. Lennox walked up to him once, Ironhide watching his charge warily, and informed him of their progress in tracking down any Cybertronian signals. To their surprise, Sunstreaker offered the human soldier a small nod and said nothing.

"Geez, how'd you manage that?" Glenn's jaw dropped as he turned to Will.

Major Lennox shrugged and sighed. "I just updated him on our progress."

"He's doing his best to help _find_ the femme, instead of offering useless platitudes." Sunstreaker's voice caught everyone's attentions. "Car washes and sympathies are all but useless to me." His optics were dark from where he sat in the corner, a cloth wiping across one of his blades. The moves were jerky and angry, a testament to the fact he was clearly barely hanging onto his control. No one was sure _what_ to make of that. The bot was vain as hell, but ever since her abduction and his return to the base, he'd been in near constant battle-ready position. Always alert, watching every shadow, and every glance people made to each other, like he was waiting for something.

"Just because we're not highly trained soldiers, doesn't mean we're just sitting around." Maggie frowned at him. "Whose manning the communications array? The security sensors that monitor the satelites? Who is attempting to help recalibrate the sensors to _locate_ her?" She folded her own arms over her chest.

"Bring me an updated progress report, and we can talk." He frowned at her, hissing a little. His optics narrowed a little, darkly, before turning back to his blades.

"What _is_ the progress report for that, anyways?" Lennox interjected, sighing as he rubbed at his forehead.

"We've picked up what..._might_ be a bunch of Cybertronian signatures." Glenn winced, turning to a computer in front of him and typing quickly. "Well, a bunch of...uh, bunches of dots that _could_ be Cybertronians. We're, um, not sure."

"What he means to say is we're recalibrating the sensors to tighten the search and weed out the fakes, and anything the computers might have picked up that may be giving off energy signatures similar to that of Cybertronians.." Maggie winced as well, before turning back to her own computer. She type a little, before pointing to her screen and looking at Glenn's. "Hey Glenn, check this out?" He looked over and they began muttering to each other.

Mikeala sighed and shook her head. Turning, she spotted Lennox leaning against a nearby wall, and frowned. "You okay?" He jumped slightly, before glancing up at her. "You look like hell. Sarah giving you trouble about all this?" Her frown lightened a little.

He shook his head. "No. She's not happy, but she understands this needs to be done to keep herself and Annabelle safe. I'm just... It's hard to sleep at night, with all this going on. We barely got a chance to relax after Mission City, to accept the bots and adjust to their being here, and already we need to rush around. We're trying to get new recruits used to the Autobots, and Sunny's less than 'sunny' disposition-"

"Don't call me that!"

"-isn't helping." Will's head dropped, his sentence ending on a dryer note, and he shook his head again. "Let's not get into the trouble Skids and Mudflap are causing with their constant brawls. Then we're hoarding civilians and need to figure out how to get some sort of...facility or something set up for them. Some of the soldiers are talking about an old campground on the other side of the island, and setting up trailers or something while we get the funding to actually _build_ a small city for them. Build? Really? They're not gonna _live_ here forever!" He blanched then. "At least, I hope not."

"Wow, that's...overwhelming."

He nodded. "Tell me about it. Then we have rescue missions, mission debriefing, running test missions, learning to work together with the Autobots better, more and more and more and more..." With a growl, he let his head drop back against the wall with a thud. "I can't remember the last time I got any sleep."

"Better not let Ratchet hear you say that." Sam's voice had Will's head shooting up again, and the soldier blinked as Mikeala turned, smiling at her new boyfriend. She curled up into his arms, relaxing a little.

"Too late." The booming voice made all three humans jump, and before anyone could protest, a large hand came down, grabbing up the Major. "What is this about you not recharging, Major Lennox? If you had come to me, I could have given you a sedative sooner. You will be of no use to us if you are falling into recharge in the middle of a battle."

Mikeala grimaced and smiled a little, exchanging a slightly amused look with Sam as Will gave clearly half-hearted protests as he was dragged off. Then they sobered, turning back to see everyone milling around, trying to be useful.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

Starscream liked me. A little too much. Sideways hated me, either because I was spreading lies without meaning to, or because I was telling the truth. Dead End seemed on the fence, talking to me one minute like I was a fellow 'Con. Glaring at me or ignoring me another. Barricade avoided me like the plague, and Scalpel liked to cut into me whenever he could. Apparently he'd never dealt with a human-turned-Cybertronian before.

What can I say? I'm one of a kind.

Literally.

And I hate it.

They didn't let me see Sideswipe again, but that didn't mean I wasn't aware of him. There were nights when I could only curl up in the far corner of my 'room', listening to him as he screamed. They were obviously torturing him, and no amount of my screaming for them to stop seemed to work. It kept me up, not that I'd be able to sleep otherwise.

On the upside, I learned how to override my recharge protocols. That wasn't necessarily a good thing, however. I was feeling heavier and heavier every day, and finding it harder to walk straight. Like now, I was on my way, once again, to Starscream's throne room, and I could barely remain upright. What was it with him and asking to see me every day? He always kept asking me to join him, and every single time I refused.

"You are not well." Dead End shot me a look.

I ignored him, instead turning to Wheelie. He hadn't opened up to me much, but seemed to take his job as my servant seriously, despite my protests. I didn't need or want a servant, but he ignored me every time I said so. As if sensing my stare, he glanced up at me, his optics shining a lot less harshly than the others. I wanted to know if he was a sparkling, youngling or a full grown mini-bot, but I just...didn't feel comfortable asking.

"Have you been recharging?"

"I'm a prisoner." I shot darkly, glaring over at Dead End. "If you were being held hostage, would _you_ recharge peacefully? Especially if you heard a comrade screaming in pain nearly _every_ fragging night? Oh, right, it's not like you actually _care_ what happens to them."

"I care!" His optics hardened, and he stopped.

"Don't stop." I turned to him, stumbling as my vision swam. I swayed, and leaned against the wall, shaking my head to clear my vision. "Don't want to keep the all mighty Dorito of Doom waiting, now, do we?" As soon as my vision cleared, I turned and began walking again.

"You can hate us all you want, but we're not all the monsters you seem to think. _I _care what happens to my fellow bots, I just...don't dare say anything in front of Starscream. " He bowed his head. "I don't know if you've noticed, but he's pretty insane."

"Gee, hadn't noticed."

He walked to my side and flashed a brief smirk. "He'd see it as weakness and offline us without a second thought. We were trained to act like we don't care, for self-preservation. Not all of us are sparkless, but we've made our berths and need to recharge on them."

"No, Dead End, you don't." I spun on him, glaring. "I keep telling Barricade and Wheelie, Decepticons have switched sides before, and could do so now. They'll be hesitant at first, but they're not gonna torture you or anything!" What was I doing? Even if 'Cade or Wheelie weren't spies, telling more bots about this would only _invite_ spies! As soon as I realized what I was saying, I froze. I felt my eyes widen as he tilted his head a little, and spun away. "Um, never mind. It's not like I'm gonna get back to them anytime soon, anyways, am I?"

I'd given thought to running away, but only two trips through this endless maze of tunnels completely wiped that thought from my mind. Then there was the fact I wouldn't know where to go, if I _could_ get away, or had a number to call if I somehow did to let the others know where to find me... And let's not forget I had no idea what kind of shape Sideswipe was in. It was just...so much easier to just give up.

_But I promised Sunstreaker..._ My chest tightened as I heard Starscream's voice off in the distance, and I hesitated. _I promised him I'd reunite them. How, though? How can I do that, when I can't even get _out_ of this hell hole?_

"Starscream is...quite...interested in you." The way he said it made my metallic plates crawl in a completely horrific manner, and I shuddered in disgust.

"Tell me something I _don't_ know. What, you think I didn't pick up on that when I found him in my so-called 'room' the other night?" I nearly snarled at Dead End, even as he blinked, startled. "And all you do is sit back and let it happen. What happened to not being completely sparkless?"

"Make him leave. You're a big femme." He shrugged.

"And _there_ is the infamous laziness." His optics narrowed with an insulted look, and I glared at him. "What? Didn't anyone tell you? I. Can't. Fight. Don't tell me you thought I was staying here for the company alone."

"The Autobots didn't teach you anything?" The almost incredulous, kind of smug tone made me want to hit him. Just a little. Then again, he _was_ a 'Con. They always had a habit of being infuriating, whether they were trying to be, or not.

"They didn't have a _chance_ to, Dead End." I sighed, nearly smacking into the wall, I leaned so heavily against it. My vision spun, and I hissed as the collision aggravated my injuries. I was healing surprisingly well. Whatever Scalpel had done, had done wonders, but that didn't mean I wasn't still injured. Especially when he took whatever chance he got to reopen old injuries to play around.

"I... I changed really fast, then spent time adjusting to my changes, but life on the base... Not all of the humans were all that welcoming, and I... I guess I'm just...really sensitive. I felt like I needed to get away, and the bots agreed after I mentioned the other humans needed a break, too." I shook my head. "I pushed for it so much, they didn't have a chance to teach me anything. I mean, I can fight hand-to-hand, but what was the sense in taking on three bots at once?" I shot him a look. "Three _armed_ bots, who'd probably just as soon shoot me, for all I knew."

He tilted his head again, folding his arms over his chest, and seemed to eye me a moment. Then his optics went dim. I had no idea what he was doing, but I got a pretty good idea when Starscream's loud rambling cut off, only to be replaced by an enraged roar. Immediately, my fatigue was forgotten. I straightened, feeling almost kind of numb as I did so, and spun to the darkened hall.

It was only seconds before I heard the loud pounding of metallic foot pads, and the ground shook, and I shot a betrayed glare at Dead End, only to find him standing almost uncomfortably close. "What did you _do_?" I hissed darkly, the panic nearly blinding as it hit me.

"Told him you feel like slag, and haven't been recharging."

"Gee, thanks! Now he's gonna sic that insane little Dr. Frankenstein on me! I'd rather fall over in front of him, dead!" He didn't have a chance to retort, before a rather pissy looking malformed Jet came stomping down the hall, his optics an eerily evil light in the dark shadows. _Oh crap!_ I didn't feel much better to see an alarmed and alert looking Barricade on his heels. _Double crap!_

"What the frag is this about you not recharging femme?" Starscream snarled and towered over me, only to shoot a sneer at Dead End, who stepped between us. "What do you think you're doing?"

"The femme is barely online." Barricade's optics shot to me at Dead End's words, and I met them warily, before glancing back to Starscream. "She reports she has not been recharging well due to her prisoner status and the audible screams of her Autobot companion."

Starscream's optics narrowed dangerously. "She is a _prisoner_, not a _guest_! If you expect me to change her accomodations to make her more comfortable..." He paused, a new glint coming into his optics, and I backed up a step as he turned a look on me. "What's in it for me?"

"No waiting for my arrival next time?" I mumbled quietly, not feeling well enough to snark off to the bot who probably _would_ shoot me in the back. "No bitching on my part?"

I blinked, and backed up a step as he moved to come closer to me, only for Barricade to grab my arm and pull me back. "What's this, have you managed to capture the sparks of the entire Decepticon army?" He laughed darkly, eyeing the smaller bots. Then again, we were _all_ smaller bots, compared to him.

"Not the entire army." My spark felt unusually hot in my chest, and my head was beginning to pound, my vision spinning. "Just the ones with actual _sparks._ Unlike yourself, of course."

"Oh, I have a spark, and I'd be more then happy to prove it to you." He sneered, optics flashing.

"Pfft!" I actually snorted, shaking my head, and then leaning on 'Cade when my vision swam. "I'd rather rip my own spark out and feed it to starving glitch mice." I shuddered. I'd _never_ imagined Starscream as at all good looking, or desireable in _any_ way. He was just too...evil. Cowardly. Backstabbing. Traitorous. You name it.

"The femme is about to collapse." Barricade's voice had it's usual growl, and I wondered if the more vulnerable 'Cade I'd met was gone again. Was this the Decepticon Barricade? The one who twisted my arm in the cop car? "If I may suggest postponing-"

"No, you may not!" Screamer's arm transformed into a blaster, which he raised and pointed at Barricade. "I've had enough of this! I've attempted to be patient, and accomodate the femme, but she has pushed me beyond my limits. I desire a new army, and she holds the key to breeding one! I will wait no longer!"

I think I'd been close to falling asleep, or recharge, or whatever, but at his exclamation, I felt my optics widen. My mind suddenly snapped alert, something pinging dangerously in my mind, and my body went rigid. "Like hell! I don't bloody well think so!" _Breeding_ an army? ME? He didn't mean with _him_ did he? No! Just... No!

There was a low growl. Starscream's cannon blaster hummed ominously and he snarled. I was certain he was going to shoot him, and I couldn't move or even think to stop him. I felt frozen. Just when I was certain Barricade was about to die, there was a click, a snap, a scream, and Starscream's optics went dark. Just as quickly as the threat came, it left, and the bot collapsed face down on the ground, causing the entire cave to shake and tremble.

I stared in shock at his fallen body. Then my eyes moved to the growling form behind him, widening in blatant disbelief. I'd wanted an ally in that world, but never thought I'd actually get one. Especially not _that_ bot of all people.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_The dead just keep rising._

_What is it with the movie series, and resurrections? In the second movie, pretty much everyone who died came back to life. Megatron, Sam, Optimus... Now, in what is now my real life, Jazz has...probably already come back to life and regained consciousness. Now _this_ of all things? _

_Hadn't this bot been killed in the first movie, at least? I am...about ninety-five percent positive he was killed by the humans in Mission City. Then again, there'd been another bot just like him in the second movie, so who knows? All I know is, I'm half alive, being held on my feet, staring at the downed body of the current Decepticon leader. Maybe I'm in shock, or maybe I'm more tired than I thought, but I just can't seem to process what I'm seeing._

_Of course, he then has to top it all off saying he just knocked Screamer out, and we have to run like hell to get away. I'm being dragged unsteadily down a hall before I know it, curses shouted all around me, and bots scattering this way and that. Before I can even protest, Wheelie's shoved into my arms, and the chittering, whistling 'Cons are breaking into another room._

_I may be a dunce right now, but one of the happiest things I'd experienced since coming here is watching as Scalpel is blasted literally into dust. If I could have, I would have asked for an instant replay, and then a slow motion, and then a burned copy on a DVD to watch whenever I liked. Then I notice Sideswipe's beaten form. They're still chirping and twittering and whistling and making God-awful noises I can't really understand, but it doesn't take a genious to know they're cursing up a storm as I'm almost tossed into the newcomer's arms while Barricade and Dead End hurry to unchain him._

_Then I'm being told over and over to hurry up and transform, and I guess it takes a blank look before the elaborate that they meant into my human form. Sideswipe is lifted by one, and I'm pushed into a familiar vehicular alternate form before I can really process anything._

_And all the while, I'm in complete 'WTF' mode? You know, 'What the frag?'?_

_I mean...are the 'Cons actually staging a breakout with their own kind, and rescuing us at the same time?_

_I'm not even given the chance to really take it in. Next thing I know, darkness is sweeping over me, and there's nothing I can do to stop it._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : August 30, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	39. Running

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

**(At The Base, Normal POV)**

Maggie stared at the computer before her, her eyes narrowing. She typed something, and a small portion of the multiple spots on the screen disappeared. Frowning, she typed some more, and a band of energy went across the screen. More of the dots disappeared, and her eyes widened. "Glenn." She pointed a well manicured nail at a single large grouping of dots. When she got no answer, she looked over and scowled, reaching out to slap the sleeping man next to her on the head. "Glenn!"

He jumped nearly a foot in the air, an odd sight for a man his size, and squealed a little, before blinking blearily at her. As quickly as he focused on her, his eyes cleared and narrowed, and he rubbed the sleep from them with clear annoyance. "What? You didn't have to hit me, you know!"

"I think I found them!" Her voice was a near whisper, despite the urgency. She was more than aware of the humans and bots sleeping and recharging around them alike. "Look!" She pointed again to the screen, frowning as the single group turned into two smaller groups. "Uh-oh."

"What's up?" Lennox's weary voice had both the teens jumping, and he quirked a bit of a forced smile their way. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you."

"Shouldn't you be asleep?" Glenn frowned a little.

"Ratchet's sedative knocked me out cold in minutes. I've been sleeping all day. I couldn't sleep now if he hit me with an elephant tranq." The soldier ruffled at his short, dark, sleep-mussed hair. "I just checked up on Anna, and was coming here for an update, to find you guys whispering." He walked over and leaned on the back of Maggie's chair. "What did you find?"

"I don't know for sure." Her accent was thicker with her own exhaustion, but Maggie pointed to the first grouping of dots, the larger one. "We managed to eliminate all spots but this one, but it _just_ broke into two." She pointed to the smaller grouping. "These ones are moving, the others are more or less stationary."

"Location." His voice was suddenly a lot more alert and commanding, and she could _feel_ how he stiffened behind her.

She typed a moment, before reciting the information off the screen to him. Glancing to Glenn, she breathed nervously. They were both thinking the same thing. If those were the Decepticons, they were massively outnumbered, and they had no way of telling Bella's signal from that of the 'Cons. Even as they watched, a single spot fluctuated before disappearing, and another was fluctuating rapidly.

Behind them, Lennox was speaking loudly through a portable radio, relaying the information, but he frowned. "Why are the marks fading in and out?"

"The sensors are calibrated to pick up on Cybertronian energy signatures. If the signatures fall dangerously low, they may not show up on the monitor. The one faded entirely, I can only assume that means someone died. The other one, in the moving group... Someone dying, maybe? I'm not sure, but it doesn't mean anything good." Maggie frowned a little, startling as the bots around them all seemed to start up at the same time. Vehicle engines revved, and headlights flickered, before they began to transform up into their bipedal modes.

Sunstreaker approached the humans rapidly, crouching to look at their primitive screens. "You've found something." It wasn't a question.

Quickly, Lennox found himself once again relaying the information, this time to the bots themselves. Everyone stiffened, turning to the screens, and Glenn shrank back when he was suddenly in the center focus of all the giant robots. Maggie took it all in stride, relaying again the coordinates, and estimated destination of the moving group, and before anyone could blink, Optimus was nearly barking orders in chirps and whistles.

Even as human soldiers began rushing around, pulling on tack vests and grabbing weapons, half the bots were transformed, heading to the tarmac, where planes were already starting. Lennox and his soldiers had to rush not to be left behind in the pace, and the Major hissed in annoyance when only about half his troops made it onto the plane before it took off at Optimus' urgent orders.

It didn't help that the first plane to take off, carrying Sunstreaker, Optimus, Ironhide, Ratchet and half the human troops it _could_ carry, was Jetfire's new C17 form he'd taken on.

"Listen, Optimus Prime." Lennox nearly snarled, watching as the door shut and the plane took to the air, leaving behind numerous troops who began rushing to another plane. "When this is over with, we need to have a talk about actually working _together_." They'd _been_ working on it, but clearly not enough.

Prime spun on him, the expression on his face grim, but his optics widened, and he hissed. Whether or not he was acknowledging the Major's words, or biting his tongue from saying something nasty, only Prime himself knew.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

When I woke up, the first thing I really took notice of was the fact I was lying stretched out on the back seat of a car. The next thing I was aware of was bright daylight, that burned my eyes.

"Finally awake, femme?" Barricade's low growl sounded in response to the hiss I let out, as my eyes met some kind of ceiling and a bit of bright blue sky. "Good, we have enough issues already."

A dull weight half on my chest, and half to my side, had me rolling my head as I struggled to process what I could recall. I saw Wheelie curled up, a little metallic fist curled against his chest, and optics offline. It hit me then, and it took everything I had not to leap up off the back seat.

"Where are we?" My voice was low, cautious. Just because we were away from Starscream, didn't mean I was out of danger. For all I knew, the Decepticons just split into two factions, and they were still 'Cons with designs to keep me prisoner. Sure, I believed there was good in some of them, but so many? How was I to take that?

"We just broke away from Starscream, effectively slagging our sparks to the deepest pits of, well...the Pit, and the first thing you ask is 'Where are we?'?" The incredulous tone made me roll my eyes, and I heard a huff. "Don't you roll your eyes at me, femme!" Barricade's holographic form appeared then, peering over the seat, and I could see just how tense he was. "Do you not understand we're _fragged_?"

"Why? You can always offer some B.S. excuse as to why you left, like you went to hunt Blackout or something-Primus! Was that really Blackout? I thought Will shot him a new anus, literally, in Mission City?" Wheelie stirred, and without really thinking about it, I placed my hand over his form, rubbing at his back and arm.

There was something about that bot that _screamed_ youngling, about as much as Bumblebee, Skids and Mudflap did.

There was a second of silence, and I watched as Barricade's holographic eyes seemed to turn distant. I really looked at him, and was startled by his striking good looks -Once again, not my type. His bright blue eyes made his pitch black hair really stand out, and I noticed he had a pale complexion. His skin was flawless, pulled taught over his jawline, and his face had almost sharp edges to it. It was as rough as he liked to pretend to be.

Then add the bad boy earring in one ear, and the picture of the stripper cop forming in my mind was complete.

I grimaced and shook my head. _I so don't need an 'I'm too Sexy' flashback right now!_

"Yes, I believe it was one of those human insects-" He saw my look and seemed to pause almost thoughtfully. "He was not offlined, but he was damaged. Still is, and carrying the dead weight of that Autobot twin isn't helping." His eyes narrowed.

_My_ eyes widened. "Auto-Sideswipe!" I jolted into a sitting position, before I could really stop myself, and only my hold on Wheelie kept him from going flying. He still jolted awake with a curse. "Is he ok? _Dead_ weight?"

"Relax, femme! He's fine!"

"Geez, why'd ya have to wake me? I was comfy!" Wheelie rubbed at his optics.

I looked down, realizing I was holding him to me, and let him go immediately. "I'm sorry, Wheelie." He glanced up at me, as though startled by my apology, and I rubbed a spot on his helmet, right at the top of his head, before turning back to Barricade. "Is he...really ok? But where are we going? Are we... Are we _your_ prisoners, now?"

"The idea's tempting, but with the Autobots and now the rest of the Decepticons after us, we don't need anymore attention. We're dropping the two of you first chance we get." His eyes narrowed, and he spun around back facing the front. "So I suggest you pick a drop off location for your friend, before we leave him in the middle of the city."

They were leaving? "But...But he's _injured_! I'm not a medic! What am I supposed to do?"

"Make his last moments comfortable?" Barricade's tone was strained and dry. "I don't know, femme. Try calling the Autobots, requesting their medic, and _explaining_ the situation to him!"

"I would, if I still had my fragging phone! I don't know the number off by heart!" I snapped angrily. "So you kidnap us, break us out, and then just abandon us? What're you gonna do, spend the remainder of your millenias running for your sparks?"

"What would you prefer we do?" He was snapping right back. "Join the fragging, organic-loving Autobots? I'd sooner squish a human than deal with them!"

"So would Sunstreaker, and _he's_ dealing!" The car tensed, and I bit my lip, recoiling from where I'd leaned over the seat to get closer to him, so I could see his face as we argued. It didn't hit me until the words were out that they could be seen any number of ways.

So...imagine my surprise when Barricade actually _chuckled_.

"Uh, what's so funny?" I was cautious.

The car vented heavily, and I watched as we entered a city's limits. It didn't hit me for a moment, that we were entering the Nevada border, and would soon be hitting Tranquility, if we kept up on this route.

"You remind me of her." The words were quiet.

"Her? Oh! _Her_." A thought hit me then. "Do the others know...?"

"Starscream didn't bother to hide the fact. He seemed quite happy to goad me on the subject. Though...there may have been a few that didn't hear of it, and I believe _they_ are some of them." 'Cade's eyes narrowed. "Now it is _my_ turn to ask _you_ something, femme." I paused, waiting, and he shot me a look. "Where is this 'Agent Simmons' place of residence located?"

I blinked. Then I frowned. Raising an eyebrow, I let that stand as my silent inquiry, pouting a little in confusion.

"He has Frenzy's head."

"Really? Oh yeah! It's in the basement of his mom's butcher shop, in his secret office!" I nodded in recognition. "And if you have the head, you can revive him." I paused then, frowning. "But he's one of Soundwave's mini-cons. Are you sure you can trust him?"

"He is a living, sentient bot, who makes his own choices." Barricade shrugged. "And...he's been my partner for a very long time."

"Well...I'm really sorry, Barricade-" I didn't know if calling him 'Cade just yet was such a good idea. "But I never paid attention to the names of a lot of the cities. I don't know _where_ exactly he is. But...if I were you, I'd keep an eye-err _optic_ out for someone named 'RoboWarrior'. He's an online hacker whose made it his duty to expose Cybertronians on Earth. If you can locate him, that's Simmons. Follow him to his mom's butcher shop, and the basement of the freezer-no, a hidden room under the freezer is where Frenzy's head is. Just...please don't kill anyone looking for him."

He looked at me a long moment.

I tilted my head. "If you wanna drop-kick Simmons all the way to Asia, I'm fine with that. Really. But otherwise, please?"

He seemed to regard me closely a moment. "You've been...surprisingly helpful." He nodded gruffly then. "Fine. In return for your..._kindness_-" He almost spat the word out with disgust. "-and cooperation, I will not harm a human in my retrieval of Frenzy. You...have my...word." The words actually sounded painful for him to say. Turning back to the seat, he glanced at Wheelie, who'd remained remarkably quiet. "And you will accompany the femme back to the Autobots."

"What? Slag, no!"

"The femme has already spoken to Optimus Prime of your conversion. They are more likely to believe you, and she is in need of medical assistance for that Autobot."

"We _have_ names, you know." I muttered quietly, pointedly, and was startled to see a flash of amusement in Barricade's eyes.

"I know." Was his only response, before turning back to Wheelie. "Starscream never notices your presence, unless he's asked for you specifically. Chances are high he's completely unaware you're one of us in this. You will accompany the femme, and assist her."

"I can take care of myself."

"Can you heal a dying Autobot?" He raised an eyebrow at me.

I felt suddenly cold. "D...D..." Swallowing took a lot of effort. Not that I needed to, but old habits died hard. Shaking my head, I stared at Barricade in blatant disbelief. "_Dying_?"

"His connection to his twin has been temporarily severed. Only time together and the assistance of a medic can repair it. Without it, both sparks will offline in only a matter of time. Add to that the severely beaten state of the mech..."

"We _need_ to find the others." I nodded, feeling dazed.

Suddenly, Barricade swerved with a curse. I yelped, even as he skidded to a stop on the side of the road, doors opening, and seatbelts hauling myself and Wheelie out. I barely had a chance to brace my painful landing and catch Wheelie, before he was transforming.

"W-What?" I felt dazed, and shook my head. I was in pain, but I pushed it aside as I carefully set Wheelie down and transformed quickly. "A-Are we under attack?" I didn't like the way I swayed on my feet, but the way my world spun... My legs shook violently, before giving out, and it was only the strong grip that suddenly appeared around me that kept me from falling. "'Cade?"

He looked at me with such an intense look, holding my body pressed against his. Oddly enough, I could feel the warmth of his spark through his chest plates, but it didn't bring with it the electrical heat Sunstreaker's and Sideswipe's had. "You should not have transformed. Your systems are still straining due to your lack of recharge."

Which would explain my world spinning, yes. "What's wrong?"

He frowned. "Something is happening with the Autobot."

"_Sideswipe._" I felt my eyes narrow. "Say it with me. _Side. Swipe._"

"Now is not the time for playing games, femme. Your ally is having some sort of fit in the air, and Blackout is struggling to bring him down to us, before he loses his grip."

"Grip? Wait, _fit_?" My mind seemed like it was in overdrive. "Oh Primus, now would be a _perfect_ time for a flipping convulsion!" I hissed sarcastically, remembering what Sunstreaker had said. I looked up at the sound of a roaring helicopter, and watched with horrified fascination as it lowered a clearly convulsing form. "Sides!" I ran forward, dodging Barricade's claws, and reached out as the bot came within grasp.

My hands found his head. "It's ok." I cradled it gently, trying to still his thrashing. "It's ok, Sideswipe. We're gonna get you back. Sunny's ok. I promise, and he's near, too! We're going to find him!" I stroked his cheeks with my thumbs, shaking as he gasped and arched back, clearly in pain. His good optic lit up brightly, landing on me, and he choked some whistles and chirps out, before thrashing again.

Suddenly, the straps holding him gave way, and I cried out, trying to grab him as he fell. Barricade was there, however, and managed to catch him.

"Slagging nuisance Autobot!" He hissed, lowering Sides to the ground.

I ignored him for favor of grabbing Sideswipe's hand and holding it tightly. I kept chanting reassurances to him, stroking his face, holding his hand, and doing my damnedest to ride out the attack. I knew Sunstreaker's had lasted a frightfully long time, but after a few minutes, my terror began to mount even more.

"Why isn't it stopping?" I brushed my hand over his cheek plate. "Sideswipe, fight it! For Sunny! Please!"

His back arched up again, and an almost inhuman screech issued from his vocal processors. Barricade swore darkly and was at his other side, working on his chest plates.

"What's wrong?"

He pushed the dented and damaged plates aside, carefully working on a cover over the spark chamber. As he managed to ease that aside, I felt my heart lurch painfully at the sight of the dim light of Sideswipe's clearly damaged spark, but I barely paid any heed to the spark itself, as sparking and spritzing energon behind it caught my attention.

"Oh, Primus, no! Please, not him! Not either of them!" I closed my eyes and prayed deeply. Primus existed. I knew it and I believed it, and I believed he was listening and could hear me. _If you wanna take a bot, take me. Please! Please, don't take him! Not Sideswipe! Not Sunstreaker! Not _any_ of them!_

"Primus isn't listening, femme! He never has!" Barricade all but snarled.

I opened my eyes to see him working frantically, Wheelie sitting on the edge of Sideswipe's chest. Blackout was holding the mech down as Barricade seemed to follow Wheelie's orders, chittering and clicking as he messed with hoses and pipes. I heard Barricade's words echoing in my head, and literally slapped a hand over my mouth to keep from snapping at him.

I wanted to scream that just because he didn't save Speedster, didn't mean he wasn't listening. I wanted to tell him about my own run-ins with the ancient Primes, which had to be Primus' doing, though he probably already knew about them. It took everything I had to resist snapping angrily at him. Now _so_ wasn't the time!

Instead, I watched, tears pouring down my cheeks, as Sideswipe shuddered, hissing and screeching, his spark flaring and fading wildly as Barricade moved frantically. Feeling a hand on my shoulder, I didn't look at Dead End. I just watched, helplessly, and cursed my lack of knowledge.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Primus, _please_! If you're listening, and God help me, I know you are... Save him! It can't be his time! Not yet! Not now, not with Sunny so close! Something happened in the movie, they weren't together. Don't make it reality too, I'm begging you!_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : August 31, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	40. Planning

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Sorry I haven't taken the time to reply to most reviews, lately. I've been _so_ busy. -.-' Plus, in a lot of cases, there isn't a lot I can say other than 'Thank you', without giving up what's going to happen next. XD So I'll just say this... Thank you all so much! I'm really glad you're enjoying the story so far! Your reviews motivate me to work on the story more, and because so many people like it, I've decided to update twice a week. Mondays and either Wednesdays or Thursdays. :D I hope you continue to enjoy the story!

* * *

**(?, Normal POV)**

"What the slag's wrong with him?"

"Pit if I know!"

"He just started...thrashing around! Is he sick? Now is _definitely_ not the time to get _sick_!"

"Would you all just settle the frag down and let me _work_?"

**Clang!**

**Clunk! **

**Thunk!**

Several of the bots wheeled back nervously, optics spinning and brightening. Ironhide rubbed at his forehead, glaring down at Will who had the _balls_ to snort on his muffled laughter. The dent was a huge beacon in the center of the weapons specialist's forehead.

Jazz, for his own part, took a hit to his shoulder, but scowled and backed off none-the-less. He was clutching his mid-section, and shrugged at the look Epps gave him, before shaking his head and turning back to the issue at hand. Still sore but functional, he insisted. Optimus allowed him to be there, so it couldn't have been _too_ bad.

Optimus frowned worriedly, completely ignoring the dent to the optic ridge right above his left optic. He stared down at Sunstreaker, once again moving forward to hold him as the mech screamed in an alarming fashion. "Ratchet..." He gripped the younger bot's shoulders and pressed as gently as he could, while effectively stilling a lot of the thrashing.

"Convulsions. Slag it, I should have... But..." Ratchet optics brightened and widened, and he cursed again, turning to mumbling as he began working frantically. "Something is wrong with their connection. He's trying to reach Sideswipe, or...Sideswipe is trying to reach him, but... Frag!" He angrily pushed one of Prime's hands out of the way, and removed a patch of armor, before tinkering with systems there.

"Ratchet, cut the mumbling and tell us what the slag's going on!" Ironhide growled lowly, crouched slightly as if to give aid if Optimus suddenly had a hard time restraining the mech.

"He's dying!" The words were clipped, clear English, and humans and bots alike reeled back.

"Explain!" Once again, it was Ironhide to demand, but this time he sounded more shaken, and his face was blank of every emotion but shock.

"Something has happened. I do not pretend to fully understand a twin-bond. All I know is something is wrong with one of them, or their connection, and it's feeding through. They are probably both in agonizing, unbelievable pain. Their sparks are reaching for each other, but every time, the energy used in the attempt to connect is fed back. It's not making it through the link, which leads me to believe it's either being blocked, or it's been severed, by outside forces."

"You don't thinks the Decepti-twits gots their filthy servos on Sides..." Skid's optics were filled with horror, and Mudflap's jaw went slack. The twins immediately hugged each other as closely as they could, considering their shapes, and shuddered in tandem.

"That's exactly what I'm thinking." Ratchet moved back to the spark, which was now dangerously dim. "Which leads me to believe the fading spark signature Maggie mentioned _might_ just be Sideswipe."

"He's near then. We can get him." Will looked from Ironhide to Optimus. He wasn't sure of a lot of what was going on; their terms just flew right over his head and out the window, but he did know it had to do with the twins being separated, one being held captive and hurt by the Decepticons.

"It won't matter, if I can't get Sunstreaker stabilized _now_! Stupid slagging, stubborn fragger! He's obviously been suffering for a while, and hasn't told anybot! Convulsions like this don't happen right away. He has to have been having them for some time now, for this one to be so severe!" There was a click, and Ratchet made an odd fizzling noise in the back of his vocal processor, before returning to his work. "I believe I may have stabilized him, temporarily."

"Can you save him?"

Ratchet vented and turned to Will. "To save either twin, I will have to find Sideswipe and fast." His voice was thick, worried and grim. "The connection would have been severed or blocked on his end, and I must repair that before anything else."

Will nodded and turned to his men. "Right! Then it's settled. We move out. Pronto!" He made several hand gestures, and the soldiers nodded obediantly, breaking into groups.

Optimus sighed, shaking his head. "Skids, Mudflap and Bumblebee, you are to remain here with Sunstreaker and await our return." He stood, eyeing the vast forests around them. At least the trees would give them cover. "Major, if you would ride with me, please. I require a chance to speak with you."

The Major didn't look happy, but nodded anyways. Ironhide eyed them a moment, before transforming and letting Epps into his alternate form. Jesse Foster -am _insistent_ volunteer for the mission- crawled into the passenger side, considerably more at ease with the truck now, then when he first climbed in.

Optimus transformed and Will climbed inside, and they were off. The ride was silent for a long moment, Optimus working to make sure the Major was comfortable, and Will just...not sure what to make of the unexpected invitation.

"I wish to apologize."

The words caught the soldier off guard. "Huh?"

"You were right. We agreed to work together, yet in a moment of tension and initial near-panic, I forgot myself. I spoke to my men in a way I was used to, not even thinking of your own, and left many of them behind. It was not my place to make a move like that. I am...embarrassed I made such a rash mistake."

"Everyone makes mistakes, Optimus." The words 'You're only human' died on his lips, said lips twitching in amusement at the irony. "You just need to remember your army's now my army, too. You're not just leading the Cybertronians, you're helping to lead NEST."

"A position I am clearly unused to. Forgive me for being so rash earlier. I meant no offence."

Will nodded, relaxing a little, and offered a hint of a smile. "We all do it. Just watch, I'll probably do the same thing if there's a human-based attack of any kind. It's gonna take time to get used to all this. Just remember, we've got your backs as much as you have ours." He patted the steering wheel slightly.

"And I appreciate it." The ride went quiet a moment longer, as they hit the limits of a city whose name Optimus didn't bother paying much attention to. The ride was comfortable, silent, with both man and mech lost in their own thoughts. Then Optimus asked a rather hesitant question that had Will bursting out laughing.

"Are we...supposed to 'hug' now?"

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

None of the mechs surrounding me were medics. Not even Wheelie. But if you think that meant they were useless, you'd be dead wrong. Barricade and Blackout worked together on the writhing form of Sideswipe with a teamwork that startled me. Of course, it never _hit_ me until after Sideswipe was stabilized and everyone began to relax.

I mean, Decepticons... The ones rumored to be sparkless, murdering, cruel monsters, were actually working _together_. The team work was amazing. They didn't argue or snap. It was like they each designated a certain part of Sideswipe's spark chamber for themselves, and took turns working to save the mech. Let's not even get into the determination and serious _work_ they put in to save him in general.

Enemies working to save the enemy...

And Wheelie... Medic or not, he didn't look all that nervous as he almost barked orders. I didn't have to understand them to know he was telling the others what to work on, and there was no doubt in his voice or optics. He stood on Sideswipe's quaking chest plates, clinging to the rigid metal as he pointed to different places, and each mech immediately got to work. Maybe he'd spent time around Scalpel, who knows?

It was after they were done, they returned to the Decepticons I knew.

"Slaggit, Black!" Barricade stood and growled. "Get in my way again, and I'll rip those fingers of yours off and feed them to Ravage!"

"_Me_? I was the one holding the mech down! You couldn't even manage that, you scrawny piece of scrap!"

I blinked, listening to them bickering, and frowned. "Wow, you guys are moodier than Ri when she's PMSing." They paused almost immediately, their heads swivelling around to me. My frown deepened then. "And what's this about Ravage? I thought he wasn't on Earth?" I kept my wording vague, but could have slapped a hand over my face when Barricade raised an almost pointed optic ridge.

"Yet."

_Ohhhhh riiiiggght._ I sighed and shook my head. _He saw my memories, which is still creepy as hell mind you. He'd know that Ravage should arrive soon._ "Okay, so now what?" I walked over to Sideswipe, passing my hand over Wheelie's helmet in a pet before reaching down to touch the still mech's facial plates gently. "Is... Is he gonna...?" I looked up at Barricade and Blackout, feeling that infuriating burn return to my eyes.

"If we can find the Autobot medic, he may have a chance." Blackout nodded.

Barricade folded his claws over his chest and growled, shaking his head. "Blackout, take Bella to the skies and find the Autobots. She will know who and what to look for. Then bring them here. We will wait nearby and...ugh..." He groaned and made a face. "We'll _babysit_ the Autobot until you return." His optics flashed to me then. "Once they've reunited, we _will_ be allowed to leave peacefully, or I sincerely doubt any of us would have qualms with attacking."

"I know I wouldn't." Dead End smirked a little. "I'm not an Autobot, and I never will be. I was raised in the ways of the Decepticon. It's what I know, and who I am, and I won't let it go."

"We won't be interfering with Autobot affairs. If they leave us alone, we will leave them, and cause no troubles. We merely..." Barricade glanced away with a heavy, almost annoyed sigh.

"We're tired of the war." Blackout shook his head. "Megatron was leading us all down a dark and dangerous path. We followed him..." He shook his head. "But now he is offline, and we desire no more. We will _not_ continue to follow Starscream."

"Screamer's a moron." I snorted, nodding. "So that much I can understand. So what, you want to become neutrals?"

"Well, we're pretty much slagged as far as the Decepticons go." Dead End shot Blackout a look. "Thanks for that, by the way."

"I didn't _order_ you to follow me, fragger."

"What's done is done!" Barricade snapped, optics flashing. "Just go, Blackout. Take the femme to the Autobots. Her presence alone should be enough to guarantee your safety, if the cocky yellow twin has taken her as a charge."

"Eh, if they attack, I'll use her as a shield." Blackout grinned my way, before his optics went wide, and he choked, a claw gripping a bundle of cables running down the back of his throat. I wouldn't have known what Barricade was doing, but Blackout was facing sideways, so I could see how deep in the claw went, which made me shudder. It did _not_ look comfortable!

"You...will do _no_ such thing." Barricade's optics flashed again, darkening considerably. "Or Starscream will be the least of your worries."

"Slag it, Barricade! Just who's this femme to ya?" Wheelie looked up and over with a look of shock. "We've barely had her in our custody a few days and yet ya treat her like she's...a mate, or somehow equal to us." Barricade snarled and shot the bot a warning look.

Part of me wondered if it was because I supposedly resembled his offline sister. Just how _much_ did I resemble her, that he actually defended me against a fellow 'Con's possibly empty threats?

Wheelie shot me a look then, ducking his head. "Sorry, toots. Decepticon raisin'." The shrug was low, almost invisible. "We're kinda raised and led to believe any non-'Con is lesser than us."

"Starscream's a moron." I deadpanned again. "And Megatron's a dick." It was my turn to shrug, and I looked back down at Sideswipe. "You'll take me to them, lead them here, and then run. That's it? You're just gonna spend your life running?"

"We'll go into hiding until we've become unimportant to Screamer. Considering his attention span, that shouldn't take more than an Earth week." Blackout quickly transformed into his helicopter alternate mode, his holographic driver flickering into view. "Let us go, femme. The longer we remain here, the more at risk we will be. Starscream has undoubtedly onlined again and sent out a search and destroy party by now."

I glanced again at Sideswipe, my heart lurching awkwardly. I didn't want to leave him, especially not like this, but I _promised_ Sunny I'd reunite them. I couldn't do that if I was here. "Why me?" I glanced over at Barricade. "You know what to look for. Why send me of all people? I could just as easily remain here with Sides." The said bot shivered, and I tightened my hold on his cheek ever so slightly.

"Because _I_ cannot transform down into a human form. Blackout can take to the skies, and widen the search area by a great deal."

"You know my memories." I winced as my wrist throbbed at the thought. "You know what to look for. Just tell him. Or show him, and he'll know."

There was a low, menacing growl, and Barricade dropped down next to me with a speed that startled me. Before I could protest, he nearly ripped my hand away from Sideswipe and roughly pulled me to my feet, causing me to stumble and cry out as my lingering injuries protested the rough movement. "And the Autobots are just as likely to blast him before he could get a word in edge-wise! Do you care about the Autobots?" He didn't give me a chance to answer. "Do you care about _this_ Autobot? Then _go_! Retrieve the medic and return as soon as possible! _You_ are the only one who can assure the successful completion of this mission!"

_'You're a soldier, now!'_ Lennox's voice screamed through my mind, as my processor flashed back to when he was giving Sam orders in the first movie, to take the cube to a specific building. _'You're a soldier, now!'_

I stumbled to Blackout's side as Barricade nearly threw me. I didn't give it much thought as I transformed down and awkwardly climbed into the helicopter. Sure, it could all have been a trap, but Starscream _never_ seemed like the type to play at such a thing, and they _did_ save Sideswipe's life. If they were acting, they could have just as soon let him die, and convinced me they'd done all they can, before insisting I needed to bring the Autobots to them. Why keep Sides online?

"What are we looking for?"

I blinked out of my stupor, only to realize the helicopter was in the air. I expected to need a headset like the one his holographic form was wearing, but maybe it was my new Cybertronian senses... The sounds of the engine and propellers didn't hurt my ears, and I could hear him perfectly. "Um, depends on whose out, I... I guess." I gave him as detailed a description of each bot as I could, but considering I didn't actually know the addresses of the families allied to the bots, that was the best I could do.

...Which was probably for the best when I realized, belatedly, that giving home addresses for human allies was _not_ the best idea.

I watched out the window as we flew over a city. We were heading to Tranquility, where the others should be, but I looked down over this little suburb, watching the cars as they drove by. I didn't know how to take it, that the people in those cars were so blissfully unaware of what was flying overhead. No one knew that any car next to them _could_ be a giant alien robot in disguise. Some...probably hell bent on killing at will.

My mind once again flashed to the countless people Sideways had killed, and I shuddered, shaking my head. My heart lurched heavily. _Just how many bots did they lose in the war? Family? Friends? How many innocents did they have to watch die, helpless to do anything about it_? My eyes burned hotly. I knew it was a risk, becoming Cybertronian, involving myself in their war, but to actually have it come _true_...

"Femme, keep your optics open."

Blackout's voice blissfully removed me from my ever darkening thoughts, and I nodded almost absently, turning my gaze to the city. "Why?" I blinked, feeling pretty drained. "We're not in Tranquility. No Autobot is supposed to be out here." _Except maybe Sunstreaker, but there's any _number_ of cities _he _could be in. What're the chances he'd be in _this_ one?_

My eyes drifted over all the normal cars, and I sighed a little. _Sides..._

A flash of yellow made me go on the alert. I knew it was ridiculous, but I almost expected to see Sunstreaker zooming off when I focused on the owner of the yellow paint. To my both disappointment and relief, it wasn't him. It _was_, however, the very bot we _needed_. And he wasn't alone, either.

"Blackout! Down below us! The yellow search and rescue H2 hummer!" I could feel my spark jump. Trap or not, we were about to find out.

"Understood. Descending." I turned, watching the way the human face seemed to stiffen, the sunglasses blocking his expression from my eyes. However, the helicopter immediately descended, pulling low over the passing cars below, until we were just inches from the back of... Was that...

The window next to me slid open, and I watched the 'Con nod. I leaned out, the wind whipping through my hair and stinging my face and eyes. "_Optimus_!" I yelled. The truck swerved wildly, nearly hitting the solstice next to it, and I felt my eyes widen. "_Jazz!_" Okay, that, admittedly, was not a call for attention, so much as an excited squeal.

"Jazz? The Autobot saboteur? I was informed he'd been offlined in the Mission City battle?"

I glanced at Blackout, watching as his lips pulled down into a frown. "He was, but the same force that turned me into a Cybertronian femme, helped bring him back." I didn't feel the need to elaborate that it was _me_ who used the dream shard to revive him. After all, if it was important, I could tell him later... If I ever saw him again. "You don't need to run." My voice softened, even as the helicopter kept a steady pace. It didn't take me long to realize he was swerving down streets, turning us around the way we'd originally come, only this time we had an entourage. "Give them time, they'll accept you."

"We are tired of _war_." Blackout was clearly gritting his teeth, the way the voice came out, and there was no mistaking the rigid set of his holographic shoulders. "We were led and trained to hate each other. They are the enemy. Even if they weren't, we are tired of _fighting_. We simply wish to finish our existence peacefully."

"The humans never _wanted_ your war." I pointed out, frowning. "The majority of us _like_ living peacefully, but...but sometimes things happen for a reason." He glanced to me, the frown never leaving his face or lightening. "Has it ever occured to you, as tired of the war as you might be, the war might not be tired of you, yet? It could chase you, bring you back into it. Hell, it probably _will_! That's what wars do." I sighed then.

"We will leave when the Autobot has been returned to his allies, and you as well. Chances are, you will _not_ see us again. There is no telling if we will even remain on Earth." The city limits were fading, as was much of the traffic, but the Autobots kept on our trail well. "They are scanning me, repeatedly. Perhaps you may wish to reassure them it is _you_ inside me."

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, mother."

"I am not your femme creator. I am not a femme at all." I didn't need to see his eyes, to be aware he was glaring at me.

I grinned admittedly maliciously, feeling bitter and nervous as hell. "Then why are you running away like a sparkling?" Before he could answer, other than a rather dark snarl, I stuck my upper body out of the helicopter and waved at the bots. "_I found Sideswipe, and he needs help!_" I hollered as loud as I could, watching as the others moved aside, leaving the Topkick and Hummer in the lead. _Now... If only Sides can hold on..._

_

* * *

_

_Dear Diary,_

_Sticky tension... And not the fun kind... That's what I think we all felt._

_The Autobots followed from a distance, and showed no sign of reacting to my words, but for Ratchet to speed up even more. They didn't speak, no holographic forms waved at me, and I couldn't even tell what the humans were thinking, but judging from the grim looks on their faces, it couldn't be good. I very suddenly began to doubt this whole plan._

_Ironhide was paranoid, and Will probably wouldn't be much better. He was the one soldier having a hard time accepting me. Well, the one closest to the Autobots, anyways. I made out Foster next to Epps in Ironhide, and was startled to see Will with Optimus, but only Epps looked relieved to see me. Ratchet tended to lean whatever way Ironhide did, if fanfictions were right, and Optimus could be swayed if the secretly smart, trigger happy bot made a good enough reason._

_What if... What if this changed things for the worse?_

_Would they let the 'Cons leave peacefully? Would they save Sideswipe?_

_Would they suddenly start seeing _me_ as the enemy? After all, I was riding around freely in a Decepticon. I wasn't bound. I wasn't gagged, and in this form, a lot of my injuries were mere bruises, but with a nasty looking gash on my wrist, where things were healing really slowly._

_Suddenly, being locked up was starting to seem once again like a very real threat._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Note** : It only just hit me Ratchet might be an H2 or an H3, I don't remember. So if I have the model wrong, sorry about that.

**Written** : Sept 02, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	41. Bad Situation

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Ever have one of those weeks, it feels like God's PMSing? You know, one minute everything's good, the next you're in hell? And it bounces back and forth at the drop of a hat? Yeah, well, this was one of those weeks for me. When I was captured, I felt my future going down the drain. Every time I saw a tad bit of kindness, I let my hopes foolishly soar, only for them to be dashed. Finally, I felt hopeless, lost and stuck, only to be rescued?_

_Now, I'm getting a taste of freedom again, and more than anything I don't want to lose it again._

_So imagine how I felt when I was kicked out of Blackout's form from a startlingly high altitude, and I had to change at the drop of a hat to keep from severly injuring myself. _Then,_ before I can move, I'm grabbed and pulled against another bot's back, something sharp being pressed to my throat. _

_All I know is, at this unexpected and confusing move, there were growls from both side. I was stuck in the middle of what appeared to be a showdown, and entirely too aware it could go south at any possible moment. Especially considering the Decepticons and Autobots involved._

_I'll tell you one thing... Staring down the barrel of Ironhide's cannons was just as scary the second time, as it was the first._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

I stared at the glowing, whirling cannons, feeling my heart shudder a little. I glanced at the bots all glaring. Were they glaring at me? From my point of view, it certainly looked like it, but I couldn't be sure. It didn't help we were surrounded by humans, all also aiming their weapons at us.

"Enough." Optimus' voice was low but firm, and the bots shifted ever so slightly, but none of them stood down. He stepped around them, ignoring their protests, and stared right at my capter. I knew he wasn't staring at me, only because his optics went right over my head. "What is it you want, exactly? I can see you have an injured bot. Judging by her-" He gestured to me, not using my name for reasons only he knew. "-earlier call, it's one of ours. You also hold _her_. Why did you lead us here?"

"We led you here to return them." Barricade's voice came from startlingly close beside me, and I swallowed nervously, my head tilting back of it's own accord when the bot holding me tightened his grip, that sharp edge digging in even firmer. "We have...removed ourselves from your war, and want only to be left in peace. Guarantee us free passage out of here, and that none of your bots will follow us, and Dead End will release the femme." There was a growled warning in his voice.

"What do you mean 'removed yourselves' from the war?" Ironhide's optics darkened. "Is this of the femme's doing? A trap? No Decepticon would just _give up_ and walk away! I bet they have bots circling around us as we speak."

"T-They're telling the truth." My voice cracked a little, and I shut my eyes, not really wanting the attention, but knowing Decepticons wouldn't listen to Autobots and vice versa. Someone had to be the middle man, so to speak, and like it or not, that duty fell on me. "I...I saw Blackout knock out Starscream so they could get away. They didn't have to bring me, or Sideswipe, but they did."

Optimus hummed a little. "And so you plan to run?" Weren't we all asking that?

"We are tired of fighting a useless war."

"Aren't we all?" Venting heavily, Optimus seemed to hesitate. I didn't know, I still had my eyes shut tight. "I would truly like to believe you, but how? What can you offer me to make me believe this is not a trick?"

"The femme's words are not good enough?" Blackout was on my other side, and sounded incredulous. "And here we thought she meant something to you." It was like a sucker punch, and my face contorted a little. I couldn't help it.

"For all we know, the slaggin' femme's a spy and was from the start! Just because she transformed, doesn't mean she wasn't a Decepticon supporter from the start!" Of course, that was only one bot. I didn't need the face, or the accent, to identify Ironhide. Of course _his_ mind would immediately perceive me as a threat. "Let me blast them, Prime. If my shot's good enough, I won't even offline the femme, but it'll take care of the Decepticon nuisances."

"And what of Sideswipe? Would you let him get caught up in all this?"

There was silence, and I hated the way it pained me they hesitated more at the thought of hurting Sides than at the thought of hurting me. Then again, they'd known him longer, but the fact they were questioning my loyalty was both expected and insulting.

"For all we know, you've done something to the femme. She could have been infected with any number of viruses, affecting her processor functions. Soundwave may have already arrived and hacked her processor, or you may simply have tortured her into breaking."

"We've barely had her for a few days." The reply was sour.

"She was _born_ human" The reply was dry, and I got the insult for what it was. Then again, Ironhide was never one for subtlety.

"That is _enough_! Both of you!" Optimus' voice was so sharp, my eyes flew open of their own accord, and I sucked in a sharp breath to see his optics landing firmly on me. He ignored the bots behind him, or the way Ironhide's cannons seemed to falter slightly and stepped forward again. "Ironhide, you will _not_ harm the femme! Dead End, release your hold on the femme, and we will speak."

"We have done _nothing_ to her!" Dead End barked, and I could feel the way he trembled, his fingers digging painfully into the cables of my throat. My hands, I hadn't even realized they'd come up to try and pry him away, clenched even harder around his wrists. "Scalpel examined her a little, and disconnected the port in her wrist, but we never 'hacked her processors' or tortured her!"

"We didn't need to." Blackout shook his head. "Apparently Sideswipe's torture was more than enough. The femme didn't last. Luckily, Starscream's a moron."

I winced, shutting my eyes again. I was insulted by being called weak, but as Blackout just threw back in my face, that's exactly what I was. I hadn't even given much thought to fighting. If it kept their minds off Sideswipe, I didn't think too much on protesting or not cooperating. Not that I was ready to spew the information they sought, but... It just never crossed my mind, and it prooved he was right.

I _was_ weak.

My eyes burned as I thought about all the people who'd already suffered because of me. Then I mentally attempted to calculate all the more people who _could_ have suffered, because I never thought to fight the Decepticons. My eyes burned hotly, and the breath I'd taken wooshed out of me heavily.

"Only a Decepticon would torture a _femme_." The hiss had my eyes shooting open in shock. When we'd first arrived, I noted the absense of a few particular mechs, but didn't think much about it. Bumblebee had a charge. Skids and Mudflap were God-only-knows where, and Sunstreaker... Well the same could be said for him. Hell, I didn't even know if _he_ knew I'd been kidnapped in the first place.

Apparently he did.

He was barely standing, but he was standing. He was standing just behind the other bots, with the twins and Bumblebee standing, crowded around him, and he was clutching at his chest, but he was _there._

"And only a _Decepticon_ would use an injured bot against another." I'd never _seen_ such a hostile look. Even as Ratchet hissed and clicked violently at him, Sunstreaker, glared straight over my head with a silent promise of death. What got me, however, was the way he leaned to the side a little, looking unbalanced, and the way Bumblebee and the twins all crowded even closer, watching him with worry.

"S-" I slammed my lips shut, before I could speak his name. I'd been about to call him 'Sunny', but the shame running through me stopped me cold. I had no right to call him that, not when he'd been right in the first place, about how weak I was. I looked down the best I could. I couldn't face him.

"Let her go! Step away from them both, and maybe I'll make your deaths quick!"

"_Enough_!" Prime's shout made me jump, and I felt the blade slice into my throat a little. "Barricade, on my honor as Prime, you will all leave here unharmed. Simply release your hostages." Optimus sounded tense, alert, worried, and as soon as the hand removed itself from my throat, I turned to see Dead End stepping away.

He looked at me warily, before shrugging almost casually. "I'm a 'Con." He slid the dagger he held into a leg sheath, before turning and walking over to the other two, leaving me standing there like an idiot.

I looked to Barricade next, who seemed to eye me a long moment. "You're all really just gonna...leave." I didn't even think about the fact the Autobots could hear me, as I frowned. Sunstreaker's presence was impossible to ignore, but it was the only one that tugged at my consciousness. I didn't ask them to stay though. I wanted to, but I knew with Sunstreaker there, there was no chance of it. Especially not with the deadly look in his optics.

The look he was giving them made the first look he'd ever given me pale in comparison.

"Yeah, 'cause we seem to be _real_ welcome." Barricade growled lowly. "Our only request is that Wheelie stay with you. Non-negotiable." He raised an optic ridge. "He _does_ join your team in her 'movie', anyways." Turning away, he began to walk off, showing amazing trust in Prime's word, and without words of their own, Blackout and Dead End followed.

So none of them noticed the poisonous looks multiple bots and humans alike gave me. Suddenly, Sunny's presence or not, I wanted to go with them. I could feel the dread rolling over me in waves, and shook as I grasped my aching wrist. I watched as, without a single glance back, the Decepticons took off, not hesitating, no words of farewell, nothing.

I was a little surprised when Wheelie didn't even protest, but he was too busy scooting off Sideswipe when Sunstreaker nearly sped over there at a speed that made light look slow. I could only step to the side as Ratchet followed him, sparing me only a cursory glance and by the feel of it, a brief scan. The sudden, tight grip on my arm was painful, but all things considered, I was beginning to grow a high pain tolerance, and all I did was spin, startled.

"You have explaining to do, femme!" Ironhide all but snarled, snapping his fingers at Bumblebee. "Watch the mini-con. Make sure he doesn't try anything." He pulled me so hard, I stumbled, and followed without a word. "Now, start with _how_ the Decepticons know about your 'movies' and what that 'Con has to do with them. Just what _did_ you tell them about us?"

"Ironhide..." Optimus sounded tired as he slowly walked over. He eyed me with a grim expression, optics narrowing as he took in the way I held my wrist. "I would assume one of them hooked up to your systems?" He raised an optic ridge.

I nodded, glancing at the ground.

"What did they find out? Huh?" Ironhide shook my arm harshly. "Slaggit, Prime! I told you the femme would be a liability! For all we know, she's working for them! Who knows what she told them?" Suddenly his eyes widened, and he gripped my arm so tightly, pain tolerance or not, I couldn't help the whimper. "They might be heading for the base as we speak! Frag! I say we offline her now, and send most of our forces back to protect the humans!"

"Ironhide." Optimus' tone was more stern this time. His optics flashed a warning. "No offlining anybot. The femme has done _nothing_ but help us since her arrival, which I may remind you was initially against her will. She has befriended many, and if you'll notice the way she's gripping her wrist, I can only assume she's in pain." He glanced once again to me. "Forced hookup?"

I blinked blankly. "Hook up? To my wrist? Considering I was tied to a medical berth with Scalpel crawling all over me, I'd say so." There wasn't any snark or defiance in my voice, and I kept my head bowed. Whether I'd willingly cooperated or not, I still felt like I betrayed their trust. I still felt cold inside, alone, empty...ashamed.

"Who hooked up to your systems and what did they find out?" His question was urgent but spoken gently.

I shook my head. "Barricade. He hooked up to my systems, then said something to Scalpel." I held out my wrist, and Ironhide's grip loosened as he and Prime had to have immediately noticed the damage. The area was coated with energon, bits of wires sticking up and sparking. My being hauled around must have knocked some of Scalpel's patch work loose. "The little crab-'Con sliced my wrist. Starscream was forced to question me, but he seemed more...well...preoccupied with getting me to agree to join him, than anything else." That numb feeling seemed to spread slowly. "He...He... H-He said he wanted to b-b-b-reed an army." I shuddered, terror coursing through me.

I'd always known he was evil, but never could have imagined just _how_ evil.

"He was...gonna blast Barricade for stopping him from forcing himself on me-" Ironhide's grip tightened again, and I heard Optimus suck in a sharp breath, but still couldn't bring myself to meet their optics. "-when Blackout came up behind him and pulled something lose or something, knocking Starscream out. Then we all just...ran. I don't... I don't think Barricade told anyone what he saw when he, um, hooked up to me."

"I see. Do you know anything of Sideswipe's condition?"

"It's... It's bad. He had this..." I paused a moment, before shaking my head. "His spark almost stopped but the 'Cons worked to save him." Part of me wondered what they would make of that.

"I believe you can release the femme now, Ironhide." Optimus vented again. "Isabella-" I winced, and there was a hesitation. "_Bella_, please look at me." It wasn't an order, but I obeyed it like it was. I could see so much in his optics and it nearly broke what little control I had left. As it was, I felt a tear slip down my cheek plate, and my lips trembled. "Are _you_ well?" The concern was impossible to miss.

I was...confused. I'd failed. I was weak. I'd betrayed them. Why did he care? Why was he looking at me with worry and what looked like pain, while most of the others looked at me with betrayal and suspicion? Shaking my head, I wrapped my newly freed arm around me almost self-consciously. "I...was scared. They started to torture Sideswipe right in front of me. I didn't want to tell them anything, but if...if they'd tortured me..." I shook my head again, the shaking in my body only getting worse, and wrapped my other arm around myself as well. "I don't think I would have been able to help it. I...I... I'm so sorry!"

"You have nothing to apologize for. You never asked for any of this." He stepped closer, and I stiffened. Something inside me reminded me he was known as the 'gentle giant' for a reason, but I couldn't help my reaction. He seemed to notice this too, because he slowed, moving more warily. "You were born human, never raised or prepared for the harshness of war. The sacrifices and pain."

That brought the image of all those people screaming and being thrown around back to my mind, and I couldn't hold back a ragged sob. More tears fell, and I was outright shaking like a leaf now. "T-They killed people, all because of me. I never wanted this! Not any of it!" But then... I had, hadn't I? I'd wished for Autobots and Decepticons to be real. I tried over and over again to imagine what my life would be like if they were, but never in my wildest imagination could I have...well...imagined _this_. All that death, pain, suffering, all because of little old me?

"The 'Cons did that." Ironhide's voice was rough, harsh. "It's what they are."

"Not all of them!" I shook my head, shaking, breathing heavily, hurting. "Barricade said Sideways was gonna be punished for it! He was ordered not to draw unwanted attention to himself. He wasn't supposed to actually _attack_ anyone!"

There was hesitation, and then another sigh. It seemed that was all the large bot did, now-a-days, was sigh heavily and shake his head. "That still does not answer my question. Are you well, Bella? Have they harmed you?"

I swallowed, thinking about every injury that hurt like hell right now. I had no real idea how bad any of it was, but my wrist hurt more than anything. Still, my mind ran to Sideswipe and the severity of his injuries. _Scalpel fixed me, right? Ratchet needs to focus. _I shook my head, before slowly and hesitantly nodding. "I...I'm fine."

Everyone was rushing around then. A trailer was brought to hoist Sideswipe onto, and then everyone had to pause when Sunstreaker refused to let anyone near his twin. Ratchet was forced to sedate the yellow twin, just to get to Sideswipe, which left the new issue of how to transport _two_ unconscious bots. Jetfire solved that problem by flying overhead, landing near us in the massive clearing, and both twins were loaded onto his alternate form.

I was also loaded on, with Ratchet, and a good majority of the humans, who eyed me like they expected me to attack at any second. I didn't, though. Instead, I curled up in the farthest corner, into the tightest ball I could, and watched silently as Ratchet got to work on Sideswipe and Jetfire took to the air.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Sideswipe's injuries were severe. I knew that just by looking at him, and I wished for nothing more than to help. The constantly cautious glances Ratchet kept shooting me didn't help, however, and I stayed where I was, silent. Will and Epps came over once, eyeing me just as warily as everyone else, and I couldn't help but feel an odd sense of Deja Vu. It felt like we were back to square one._

_Or even worse._

_I wasn't an idiot. I knew people were looking at me and wondering if I was a Decepticon supporter in disguise. I'd walked away visibly more or less unharmed, and Sideswipe was out cold and badly damaged. They didn't trust me the first time I arrived at the base, and for a lot of them, this was now a confirmation of that lack of trust. Ironhide clearly didn't trust me, and I don't know if he even believed me when I told them what happened. Optimus seemed to, but despite being their leader, he was one bot among many._

_Bumblebee didn't meet my eyes. Ratchet watched me almost suspiciously. Ironhide didn't meet my eyes, but when I wasn't looking, I could _feel_ him watching me suspiciously. The twins more or less stared at me every second they could, as if waiting for something, and Sunstreaker? Well, considering the shape Sideswipe was in, I wasn't surprised he acted like I didn't exist._

_I didn't respond when Epps asked if I was okay, and Will asked for a summary of what happened. I didn't respond when Will kicked my foot lightly, trying to get my attention. I didn't respond when finally Ratchet himself asked if I was injured._

_Not that, _that_ mattered. Either way he'd be scanning me and figuring it out for himself._

_I stayed quiet the entire ride back to the base, shaking, crying, and thinking about all the ways I let the Autobots down. All because I was born a weak human, and I froze in a bad situation._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : Sept 2, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	42. Aftermath 1

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

**(?, Normal POV)**

_**"Well...that went well."**_

_**"Shut up."**_

_**"Did you see the way they looked at her? You know, when you mentioned about knowing about her 'movies'? Man, were they pissed!" **_There was a low, almost strained chuckle. "_**That femme's in a pitload of trouble!"**_

_**"Ironhide looked ready to blast her."**_

The lead cruiser swerved violently, cursing loudly. _**"Slaggit! Can't you two keep from gossiping like Earth femmes?"**_ He snarled lowly, quickly correcting himself and continuing along the same line, but noticeably slower than before. His processor was filled with images he'd rather not have had, and he couldn't shake them as much as he wanted to. Especially considering his processor kept replacing her with a younger, more adolescent form, with familiar crimson optics. He shuddered, barely keeping it from being visible.

_**"What crawled up your exhaust and died? You seem awfully close to that femme, 'Cade, considering how long we've known her. Hey, wait..." **_Dead End snickered over their internal communications. _**"Has Barricade found himself a sparkmate?"**_

Growling again, this time far more viciously, Barricade sped up without a word, slamming his front end into the back of Dead End's shiny new red Dodge alternate form, leaving a huge dent, paint transfer, and a loud, angry squeal from said mech.

_**"Hey! Watch it, slagger!"**_

_**"Then watch what you say, Dead End."**_ Keeping his speed up, 'Cade growled about the dent he could _feel_ on his front end, and grumbling about the repairs and repainting, already planning the stealing of some black paint, and securing of an isolated place to work.

_**"Honestly, Barricade, what's your problem? What's so special about **_**this**_** femme?"**_

Barricade growled again, before slowly pulling over on the shoulder of the empty road. He hadn't really ever told them about Speedster, or what happened, and judging by their questions, they really _didn't_ know. It was...very painful to remember. Well, that and he was a Decepticon. Reminiscing about loved ones, and showing any emotion other than hatred had never really been a good thing. Still, they were loyal soldiers. They'd expressed displeasure for working for Starscream, and hesitance to keep blindly killing for selfish reasons. They helped him get away, and they worked well together.

Taking a deep breath, he sank down on his axels. _**"The femme reminds me of...my offlined little sister."**_ He began to explain what had happened, and how he'd come to believe it had been the Autobots.

_**"Wait, **_**Bumblebee**_**? That little Autobot scout?"**_

_**"That's what I'd thought. I found him standing over her smoking body, looking like he'd been through a battle. He had injuries, and he was armed. She was...offline."**_ His spark clenched. In his own optics, it had always justified his loathing of the Autobot. Even though he knew better. _**"Bella resembles Speedster, a great deal."**_

_**"If, wait, you said it wasn't him?"**_ Dead End was parked in front of him, and Blackout sat in the middle of the road a little distance behind. They all kept their sensors to full, keeping optics out for signs of any other Decepticons, Autobots, or even humans. _**"Who was it?"**_

Hidden optics narrowed, and the sound that issued from Barricade's engine made Dead End inch away ever so slightly. It was a choked, metallic grinding that actually sounded painful. _**"Starscream."**_

Both other bots stiffened. They were quiet for a long moment, and Barricade had a pretty damn good idea what was going through their processors. There were really only two questions that would top the others, and he vented sharly, rolled his optics, and set about explaining the best he could.

_**"I found out it was Starscream when I accidentally walked in on him talking to Megatron. He spoke of offlining a crimson-opticed femme, but having to get through the little Autobot scout to do so. That in itself was more than enough to fill me in, but he then included that he found out it was my little sister."**_ Barricade growled lowly. _**"He was quite proud of the fact, too."**_

_**"And you've been following him? I would have expected you to offline him first chance you got!"**_ The disbelief in Blackout's voice was clear.

_**"I would have, except I was following Megatron. Not Starscream. When Megatron offlined... I was beginning my plan to get away."**_

_**"And the femme just pushed you to do so sooner?"**_

_**"Yes."**_

Blackout vented and his helicopter form seemed to tremble. _**"I knew Starsceam was a monster. He was insane. That's all there is to it. His processor has glitched one too many times, but... I never would have imagined him to actually offline a femme."**_

There was more silence, before Dead End rocked on his axels. _**"So what about this femme? Bella? Did we do right leaving her with the Autobots?"**_

_**"We're Decepticons-"**_

_**"That doesn't mean we don't have morals."**_ Blackout grumbled a little, interrupting Barricade. _**"Maybe we should stick around, keep our optics and audios open to make sure we **_**did**_** do right. The femme has done nothing to earn herself the glares those bots gave her. I honestly worry about what kind of reception she'll have."**_

Dead End snorted. _**"Especially if Ironhide believes her to be a Decepticon spy or supporter."**_

_**

* * *

**_

**(Bella's POV)**

"Let's pull a prank."

Blinking, I stared at the speaker, raising an eyebrow. Out of all the people I'd met and gotten to know, she wasn't one of them, and what the movies disclosed about her wasn't enough to claim to really _know_ her. I was right about being considered a spy and losing all the trust I'd gotten. Most of the people didn't trust me and spent their time glaring at me, or speaking darkly about me. Any possible chance I had of feeling wanted flew right out the window.

"What?"

I frowned and shook my head. Her first trip to the base, and our first time meeting, and she speaks words I never could have expected. "What makes you think I'm a prankster?"

She raised an eyebrow and flipped her perfectly styled, long, dark hair over her shoulder. "Word spreads fast on the base. Apparently that noodle prank and psychodelic Prime have people talking." She grinned. "And I met your best friend, Rika, who showed me the video." Sighing, she moved to sit next to me, and I glanced briefly to the four other women in the room, all eyeing me with varying looks of worry and wariness. "Look, I heard about what happened."

"We all did." The red head frowned, brushing her hair over her shoulder. "Is it true you know about us all?"

I sighed and shook my head. "I know your names, a little about your characters. I mean, you're Mikeala Banes." I glanced to the same girl who'd declared 'Let's pull a prank' only a few minutes earlier. "You're considered the evil jock concubine by Miles. At least, that's what a lot of people think. You like guys with big muscular arms, and dated Trent for a long time, before Sam and his odd Camaro came along."

She looked startled, but after a moment nodded. "Uh, yeah."

I bypassed Maggie and Rika. I'd spoken to them both already, and they already knew more or less what I knew. My eyes landed on the red head who'd spoken before. "You're Judy Witwicky, Sam's mom. A lot of people say you're a really wonderful mother, just...a little...uhm..." I thought hard, trying to pick the perfect word to describe her rather dense, sometimes irrational behaviours, without insulting her.

She grinned wryly then. "Hair-brained?" I startled and she laughed slightly. "I know how I am. Trust me. I also know how I come across to others." Her smile never once faded, but her eyes seemed tense. "I also heard what they said about you, that you got away from the Decepticons with one of their others."

"More like the Decepticons just let you go." The last woman spoke with a tense frown. "Optimus Prime insists you aren't a threat. That he knows and believes what you say beyond any shadow of a doubt. He also said your injuries support your story, and their medical bot can confirm you were really hurt before."

I nodded. "Starscream had taken more than a passing interest in me. I was injured, but when I didn't fight the fact I was captured-" And that was still haunting me, trust me. "-he ordered me examined and repaired. Scalpel's work nearly killed me the first time, and he didn't want to risk killing me again." I shuddered a little. "I can't help but wish he had."

"Bella." I didn't have to see her face to know Rika was frowning.

"Starscream wants to use me to breed an army, whether I like it or not. I had a chance to get the Autobots new allies, and blew it. I had a chance to show myself a true Autobot ally, and blew that too. Now no one trusts me, and I might as well be a prisoner. Any 'access' I had to the base has been revoked, and I'm not allowed off the island anymore." The tears burned hotly. _I feel like my fear of being locked up is coming true._ I shook my head then. "So I don't think a 'prank' is a good idea."

The girls had all tensed, but it was the last one, the blonde one to speak. "It's safe to say you know who I am, then?" I nodded, and she frowned. "And about my family?" I nodded again. "Are we in danger?"

"I don't know." I shrugged a little, curling up on the small cot my 'room' held, bringing my knees to my chest and wrapping my arms around them. "It's highly possible. It didn't show it in the movie, but then, it didn't show about ninety percent of what went on between 2007 and 2009 in the second movie. Just that Sam and Mikeala were pretty serious." I watched said girl blink and blush. "Will was promoted and one of the men in charge of NEST. Epps was here too. Maggie and Glenn weren't seen or spoken of at all. Miles wasn't in the picture. Sam was still the same as usual, but getting ready for college. His parents were both sad to see him go, but excited about his actually attending a top college."

Judy smiled and nodded, and Sarah gave the woman a small smile full of sympathy and understanding.

"Mikeala wanted to break up with him, because of the whole long distance thing." I shot Mikeala a small glance and slowly leaned her way, not making a sudden move, because I didn't want to scare her off. It hurt me I had to be so careful, but I had to do what I had to do. They didn't know me. It stood to reason they'd be wary, after hearing the rumors floating around the base. "And because he refused to say 'I love you'." I all but whispered the words in her ear, not sure if she wanted Judy to know about it. "He's just a typical guy, embarrassed and afraid to say it first."

Her eyes widened, and it didn't seem possible but her blush deepened. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but then closed it again and nodded.

"So what...? What do we do then?"

"Well, you could tell me what you're all doing in my room." I frowned, my chest tightening. "I don't think any of us know each other well enough for a massive, all girl sleep over. Especially all things considered."

"We...didn't have much else to do. We heard about other civilians, including a girl who was born human and turned Cybertronian, and we were curious." Judy tilted her head a little. "This is all so much to take in, and you're really one of them? But you look like any of us."

"This is just a form I can take." I looked down at my hands. In truth, I didn't _need_ to take this form, but when I was being seen as a threat by so many, the last thing I wanted to do was come across as threatening. And if I was in my bipedal mode, that's exactly how I'd seem.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, and I let my head fall to my knees, burying my face as the frustration seemed to flit through me again.

Without even waiting for an answer, the door opened. "Just checking on things." The voice was that of Foster, and it was tense.

I ignored him, even as the other girls seemed to sigh and reassured him things were fine. It was Rika who made me smile a little. Trust her to make light of pretty much any situation.

"What? Did you expect her to turn around and eat us all in fifteen minutes? Or maybe you thought one of us might need to use the little girl's room? Trust me, _officer_, if I need to pee, I have enough people here to hold my hand. Thanks for the offer though."

"Or maybe he was hoping to walk in on an all girl orgy." Mikeala's voice had my head shooting up to stare at her incredulously. She gave me a look and shrugged. "What? I thought he was one of those who was on your side at first. Now he's on theirs?" She narrowed her eyes at him. "Just because of rumors? If we all believed in rumors, I'd still be stuck in highschool, and Sam and I never would have met. The Autobots would have been destroyed the moment they made their presence known."

"Not everyone's a bad person." Maggie added quietly, shaking her head. "If Bella wanted to hurt us, she could have done that a long time ago. She had a lot'a chances to do it. And why bring Sideswipe back to us? It just doesn't make sense."

He sighed and held up his hands in a sign of peace, before running one through his hair. "The soldiers were just talking about who was gonna make the next check. Despite what the big guy says, a lot of people don't feel comfortable with so many civilians here with you, Bella." He shot me an apologetic look. "I don't believe you're a threat, I just don't know how to proove it, and it's a pain in the ass to hear the soldiers all bad mouthing you, all because of rumors." He walked in and shook his head, closing the door behind him.

"So most of the base hates me. Tell me something I don't know."

"Not most of the base..." I gave him a look and he sighed again. "Okay, okay, yeah, about sixty percent of the base doesn't trust you. Anyways, that's not why I came. I heard them talking, but I was already on my way. Ratchet wants to see you now that he's finish Sideswipe's and Jazz's repairs."

"He's _finished_?" My frowned deepened. "But Sideswipe was hurt really bad."

"Apparently the worst of it all was the severed twin-bond, and he's fixed the damaged cables that help to boost the energy or something. He said the twins just need to spend time together, and reconnect and affirm their bond."

"So what, it's like alien physiotherapy?"

He nodded. "Apparently. Sunstreaker needs to 'reach out' to Sideswipe first to re-establish the bond, then when Sideswipe wakes up, he needs to 'reach out' to fully fix it. Then they need to use it a lot to strengthen it back up."

"I always thought it was purely mental." I was musing out loud, but that's just me. "I mean, I thought it was a connection between their sparks." When I glanced up, I could see half the people staring at me in confusion, and I shook my head. "Hearts. Between their hearts. I never imagined it had any sort of physical form or anything."

"Well Ratchet wants to see you. Just...watch out for Sunstreaker. He's nastier than ever with humans, and refuses to leave the medical bay."

I got up slowly, moving past the other girls. "Then let's get this over with." My wrist had been hurting the entire time I was here. It felt like a dull throb, but it was angry and annoying, like a fracture that had been allowed to sit. Or maybe a cut that had gotten infected. All things considering, I doubted it was infected. Still, who was I to tell? I left the room and walked ahead of Foster, my eyes glued to the floor ahead of me. I kept enough sense of my presence to avoid walking into any soldiers, but I absolutely refused to make eye contact with them.

The last thing I needed was to confirm my thoughts and feelings.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_It seems so quiet. To human ears it might seem like all sound just died, as I walk past. I feel like... Well, I feel kind of like a death row inmate on my way to the electric chair. I don't think I'm too far off, either. After all, I said to _human_ ears, it might sound like all sound died. That's not the case at all. I can _hear_ them whispering. Half of them keep asking each other if I'm really a spy, or just some girl who got caught up in it all._

_I don't know what's worse. The whispers of hatred, claiming me a threat, or the whispers of pity and sympathy._

_By the time I make it to the medical bay, I feel like I'm back on the plane, shaking and trying not to break down and cry. I've never felt more trapped and confused._

_I wanna go home!_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : Sept 4, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	43. Aftermath 2

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Hey guys. Looks like I can't reply to reviews, even if I want to. -.-' I've been having some major login issues with the site, that only seems to effect PMs or Review Replies. I have no idea what it is, I've had it for about 2 months now. I've even changed my password. Either way, I sometimes have to relog 5 times before I can successfully send a PM/Review Reply without the site logging me out. -.-'

And, I'll be without internet on the weekends, from now on. My grandfather's computer is on it's last leg... Note the lack of 's' on there? I mean, it's almost _done_. -.-' I brought my computer out, and found out it's not compatible with his internet, so... No internet from Thursdays - Sundays from now on, probably. Hell, I might not have a computer at all, other than my own, now. -.-'

So the updates might come a little later from now on. I'll do what I can. I wanted to send a birthday bonus chapter last week, but, uh...internet issues and all that. -.-' Sorry, guys! Thanks for your comments, though! I'm really glad you like it so far. I'm nearing the end...in completed (not posted) chapters, just having a bit of a rut thinking of a weakness for my big baddie. XD

Anywho, let us end this ages long note, shall we? On with the chapter!

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Once again I feel like a hypocrite. I keep thinking I'm the only one suffering, that everyone else is happy and at home here. I couldn't be more wrong. Of course, it never once crosses my mind until I actually _enter_ the medical bay. I can't help but notice the giant yellow mech leaning over the medical berth. He doesn't even blink as I enter, and I find myself disturbingly soothed._

_Not by the look of pain in his eyes, or what he's pained over._

_But by the fact that I _know_ Sideswipe is alive. My mind can't help but scream "I did it! I did it!" over and over again, knowing I'd at least kept _that_ promise. I'd sworn to Optimus and Sunstreaker alike that I'd reunite the brothers, and I did. Sunstreaker's alive. Sideswipe's alive. And as far as I know, neither are in danger of dying anytime soon._

_I did it._

_I really did it._

_I successfully reunited the brothers._

_It doesn't matter to me that Sunstreaker doesn't tear his optics off his brother's still form when I arrive. It doesn't bother me that he doesn't even flinch when Ratchet greets me by name and orders me to transform into bipedal mode for an examination. In all honesty, part of me wonders, whether I succeeded or not, will he take stock in the rumors? If he looks at me, will he see a traitor?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

"How have you been feeling since your arrival? Scans indicated multiple injuries that were still in the process of healing. I believe the worst was your file transfer port?" Ratchet walked over, optics, well... I couldn't tell what he was feeling. I don't know if he was masking his look, or if I was just not looking hard enough. He tilted his head. "I can see you are troubled. I take it this is over the newest rumors?" He shuttered his optics and vented, before shaking his head.

His reaction surprised me. As far as I was concerned, he was one of the ones probably cursing my name for all he was worth.

He glanced down. "Thank you, Jesse Foster-"

"Jesse." The young red head shook his head. "If we're gonna be team mates, might as well ditch the formalities, right?"

Ratchet raised an optic ridge. He regarded the boy for a long moment, before nodding. "You are right, I suppose. Very well. Thank you, _Jesse_, for your assistance in bringing Bella in for an examination."

"Oh, don't call it that." I shuddered a little, feeling the tiny crab legs -heh, crab legs- of Scalpel crawling all over me. Ratchet gave me an odd look, and I shook my head, wrapping my arms around myself and hissing as my wrist throbbed angrily. "Let's just...get this over with." I walked over to another berth, across the room from Sunstreaker, and sat down.

I found myself staring at the mech, as Ratchet bid Jesse farewell and the officer left. He looked so sad and angry, but more than that, he looked _worried_. He clutched Sideswipe's one hand, and leaned over him, optics fixed on the form of his twin. The way he leaned, it couldn't have been comfortable in any way, but it was like it didn't matter.

"I've told him to seat himself on the berth next to that of his twin, but he barely even looks at me." Ratchet vented. "I've never seen him so worried. This isn't good for his already strained spark, but he won't allow me near him to sedate him."

"Fool me once..." Sunstreaker's voice had an odd, hollow sound to it, and I watched as he glanced up. He locked optics on Ratchet. "Shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me." His optics flashed as he looked at me, and for the first time, he seemed to register my presence. He straightened slowly, still clutching Sideswipe's hand, and eyed me with an unreadable expression. "You..."

I looked down, grasping at my wrist slightly.

"_You_ need to rest, Sunstreaker."

"_I'm_ fine, medic." The brusque tone made me smile ever so slightly. That was the Sunstreaker I knew. "I rested enough the last time you sedated me."

"You were about to collapse. I did what I had to as a medic to protect your strained spark."

"I'm _fine_. See to the femme."

Swallowing heavily, I kept my face down. It didn't escape my notice that I was always 'the femme' to him. I just...didn't know what to make of it, and didn't care to dwell on it at this point in time. When Ratchet took my wrist, I didn't resist. I just stared at his foot pads, trying not to think. Thinking just caused me pain and stress, and I just didn't think I could handle that right now.

"Barricade hooked up to your systems?" I nodded, feeling the burning of a stare but not daring to raise my head. "Who else? It looks like Scalpel severed all connection lines to the port, making it literally impossible for anymore connections without Soundwave's assistance. That's not something I'd expect a Decepticon to do willingly, if they wanted your information."

"Barricade said something to him." I shrugged.

"What did he say?"

Frowning, I took a deep breath. "Well, first of all, he ordered a pizza." I leveled Ratchet with the sourest look I could manage. Considering my mood, I'm pretty sure I heard the paint on Sunstreaker's back curling. "Extra, extra, extra large, with triple cheese, battery acid and anchovies. Then he ordered the little monster to rewire Starscream's vocals so he sounded like a femme." My eyes narrowed. "Well, at least that's what I'm _guessing_, considering he was speaking _Cybertronian_, and all I understand about that language you could fit on the head of a pin."

He stared at me a moment, before shaking his head. "I get the point."

"Barricade was the only one who connected to that port and read my memories. Then he said something and Scalpel just...slit my wrist."

"Hmm..." Ratchet pressed gently at the area and I couldn't help but hiss at the sensation. "It looks like he wasn't the least bit careful about what he slit. There were some sensitive but otherwise unimportant wires, which is why you are still in pain." He picked at a few of the lose wires, and one of my legs jerked by accident as I cried out at the pain it caused.

The clang rang out, and I blinked wide eyes, torn between falling to my knees in apology, or dying of laughter as Ratchet frozen, his own optics widening and going alarmingly blank. However, just as quickly as it came on, he shook it off, and I felt my eyes widen even more.

_Holy hell! The medic's got numb nuts!_ It took all the strength in every fibre of my being not to start braying like a donkey with laughter, at the thought. Of course, it hit me they didn't have anything there to _hurt_, but that didn't stop the Decepti-creep I sacked earlier from doubling over.

And Ratchet just continued on like nothing had happened, if his voice was just a _little_ higher. "And his repair job was not very thorough. He left energy flowing through the severed wires, leaving you vulnerable to even more pain."

"What happened to Scalpel?" The voice was low, again hollow.

I looked up hesitantly to see Sunstreaker's optics once again on his brother. The sight was...oddly beautiful. Not Sideswipe's obvious beating or Sunstreaker's obvious pain but... The devotion. The pure emotion Sunny radiated over his brother's unconscious form was heart-wrenching. _That_, right there, was why they were two of my favorite bots. There was so much depth, and intense emotion in them. "He was blasted into nothing. I...I didn't see who blasted him. It was one of the 'Cons who rescued us."

"I hope you don't expect me to welcome them with open arms." He shot me a dark look, reminiscent of the first time we met. The gruff growl in his voice was also the Sunstreaker I'd first met only so long ago. "They're 'Cons. They captured him and did this to him in the first place." Optics narrowed. "And I _don't_ forgive easily. Especially not a slagging 'Con!"

"I don't...expect anything. Besides, they didn't stay anyways." My chest lurched oddly. I was...worried about them.

His optics narrowed. "Not for a lack of want on your part. I thought the 'Cons were your enemy, too."

"Most of them are." My voice went quiet, as I recalled how Barricade treated me. What he'd told me. "Some just made a mistake. They aren't as evil as you think." My eyes shot up then and narrowed. "As the fact they went and saved your brother should proove."

He growled, sneering at me in the process, and eyed me with contempt. "_Are_ you a 'Con sympathiser?"

"If I was, what am I doing here?" I let my eyes fall again, along with my heart. Sagging, I shook my head. "But why bother saying anything? I'm a prisoner now. Just like I knew what was gonna happen." I drew my knees to my chest, and tried not to break down. _This... This is what I was afraid of happening, all along._ "Can I just go back to my room now? Before Ironhide decides to make good on his threat to blast me."

"I'd re-wire _him_ to sound like a femme, and weld both his cannons to his aft before I let him blast a femme." Ratchet growled. "You merely need to be patient. Optimus has been speaking with your government about reinstating your access limits."

"He's pretty much the only bot who doesn't hate me again, and that's only because it's gotta be real hard for him to hate anyone." I sighed.

"He is _not_ the 'only bot' who doesn't 'hate' you, femme." Ratchet groaned a little, before gently grabbing my wrist again. "I am fully aware you feel weak and ashamed for your reactions to the Decepticons." My head ducked even lower. "However, keep in mind, you were not raised as a soldier. Nor were you raised to deal with evil, or hostage situations." Carefully, he moved wires around, and I winced, tensing in pain, before he touched something, and the pain fled. "I've deactivated the pain receptors in the area. It will take me several Earth hours to locate if we have replacement wires, and then the repair itself should be simple." There was a tingle, and Ratchet placed my wrist back on my knee, before stepping back. "Other than your injury to your knee being recently aggravated, and strained back struts, the majority of your injuries have been healing well."

I nodded silently.

It was quiet in the room a long moment, before Ratchet vented. "Very well then. Please remain here while I go check on the supplies. I will return shortly." I watched his foot pads as they turned, listening as they walked walked steadily out of the room with two swishes of the electronic door.

The room went silent again.

I curled up there, staring at the plain tiled floor. Occasionally, I'd glance to my wrist, once again taking the time to take in the new metallic body. I mean, I was a little more used to it, but I'd be lying if I said I was completely comfortable in this form. It still felt, no pun intended, alien to me. Part of my mind couldn't help but reminisce about the good old days.

_I miss reading fanfictions and talking to fellow Trans-fans about the movies._ On the upside, I'd made a difference. On the downside, I wasn't so sure it was worth being labeled a traitor and a Decepticon sympathizer. It might only have been a rumor, a suspicion, but I knew _that_ kind of rumor wouldn't just disappear. I'd be stared at, labeled the enemy, and watched for a long time. _I reiterate. I wanna go home!_

Then my mind began to work in a different direction.

_I'm not a soldier. Optimus can't order me around. If I want to leave, unless they lock me in a cell and prove to me I'm a prisoner... Optimus stated I was a guest, so I could leave if I wanted to, right?_

"What are you thinking, femme?"

The almost exasperated voice had me looking up sharply, only to find Sunstreaker watching me with an unreadable expression. "That I wish you'd just squished me when you found me." I admitted. His expression didn't change, and I turned my gaze safely to Sideswipe. "That I wish I'd never come here. That I wish I'd gone with the Deceptions. At least _then_ I'd have my freedom."

"You were a prisoner with them." His tone turned to a growl, and his optics narrowed.

"I was a prisoner with Starscream. Barricade treated me like an equal."

"Do you care for this Barricade? Because you're wasting your time, femme. He's a Decepticon. Always has been. Always will be. He'll use you and leave you. No Decepticon honors a femme."

It took me a second to get exactly what he was talking about, but when I did, I felt shockingly insulted. "Do you know what they say about _you_, in a lot of fanfictions?" I snapped, my head snapping up to glare at him. "About you and femmes? Autobot or not, they say you 'love 'em and leave 'em'. You're a player. You're in for it for the fun, but you're not looking for a sparkmate! Doesn't sound much different from what you're saying about 'Cade, now, does it?"

His optics widened, and I watched as he stiffened, his grasp tightening on Sideswipe's hand, visibly. Then his optics narrowed. He looked shockingly insulted. "You don't know anything-"

"Neither do you!" I all but yelled the words, jumping to my feet, and swaying a little in pain, as I jabbed a finger of my good hand at him, almost pointedly. "You only know what you've heard! _Rumors_! You weren't _there_! You didn't _see_ how he acted!" Then I watched as his optics narrowed even more, a strange glint filling them. "I'm _not_ a Decepticon supporter! Stop fragging treating me like I am one!"

"You never denied it."

"The hell I didn't! What the pit did I just tell you! JUST tell you!"

"That's not what I'm referring to." I paused, frowning, the anger melting out of me and being replaced by confusion. Before I could ask, however, he sneered. "So you do care about the 'Con, do you?"

"_WHAT_?" Some part of the back of my mind was pretty sure the entire base probably heart that squeaked protest, and I could feel that anger flowing back into me. "Don't... Don't. You. _Dare_!" I hissed the words lowly. "Don't you fragging _dare_ twist my words around, you useless piece of scrap!" My entire body went rigid, filling with so much tension, I felt like I was going to explode. "I see him as a _possible_ ally in this war, on _our_ side, the _Autobot_ side. I see him as a _possible_ friend. _Nothing_ more!" I was _seething_. "Besides..." Finally, I straightened, sneering right back at him with such anger, it bordered dangerously on an overwhelming, blinding rage. "What do _you_ care? It's not like you've ever given two frags about me! I'm the...the...the _useless_, _pathetic_, _formerly human pest_! I'm pretty damn sure the idea to squish me _still_ runs through your processors!"

His optics had narrowed into the thinnest, most dangerous slits I'd ever seen, but it didn't phase me. I was never a violent person, but I wanted to hurt him. Bad. So I took the safe way out. I ignored Ratchet's orders, turning and stalking out of the medical bay. I stalked blindly down halls, transforming so I didn't risk stepping on anyone. I bumped into a lot of people, ignoring each one as I went.

People called to me. Somewhere in the back of my overwhelmed mind, I could make out familiar voices calling to me. Some were demanding I stop. Ordering even. Others were just calling to me, trying to beg me to stop.

I ignored every single one of them.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Nothing's even working in my head, right now. I'm so angry, all I can keep thinking is how out of hand everything got. One minute, I'm afraid of going to the Autobots, fearing being locked up like some Roswell experiment escapee. The next, I admittedly learn to feel somewhat comfortable with them. Then I leave on what's _supposed_ to be a vacation, only to be captured and tortured by the Decepticons._

_Instead of being rescued by Autobots, which would have been _so_ much easier, I'm rescued by rogue Decepticons, making everything so much worse. I'm treated like a spy. Like a traitor. I'm locked up, much like I originally feared happening. My guardian doesn't even trust me anymore, not that he trusted me much to begin with, and half the humans who seemed to be warming up to me were suddenly treating me like I was a ticking bomb, or the most fragile glass._

_Worst of all, I have nowhere to go. No one to talk to._

_Well...almost no one._

_I guess fate is leading me again. Optimus wasn't in a meeting when I found him. Instead, he's in truck form in the main hangar, with a bunch of soldiers washing him. He looks like he's seen better days, but it doesn't phase me. My appearance obviously bothers the soldiers, but that doesn't phase me either. I ignore Will's reaching arms. I ignore Epps and Jesse calling my name._

_I begin scaling the truck, only for the door to pop open silently. There are no words exchanged. I climb into the truck, and all noise fades as the door shuts behind me. I climb back into the sleeper, just wanting to ignore the world, just for a little bit, and the tears start to fall._

_Whether or not he's been learning from the worldwide web, Optimus shows more compassion and better instinct than I ever could have imagined. He appears next to me, in holoform, and for a split second, the laughter that hits me is nearly hysterical. Can't blame me, though. It wasn't _me_ who originally brought up his holoform in nothing but a thong, though it _is_ my twisted mind that thinks about it _now_ of all times._

_After getting an odd look of confusion and concern, I just shake my head and hold out my arms. Again, its like he just instinctually knows what I need, because he moves and sits next to me, wrapping his arms around me. _

_I'm not someone to cry at the drop of a hat, but everything's just been too much for me. So I curl up in his arms, soaking his shirt with my tears, and thanking Primus he saw fit to at least allow me _this_ little bit of kindness._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : Sept 4, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	44. Aftermath 3

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

**(Decepticon Base, Normal POV)**

The remaining Decepticons couldn't help but wince every time the heard the screams of rage. Even Sideways, glaring down at the pile of dust that a scan prooved used to be Scalpel, couldn't help but wince. He sneered at the other Decepticons in the medical bay, struggling to make sense of odd tools, and talking among themselves about different medical procedures.

_"Forget that slag!"_ He hissed darkly, fingers clenching around a handful of dust he'd swooped down to grab. _"Forget the medical practice! Master Starscream doesn't care about that! Get out there and track down the traitors!" _The last of his sentence ended up a yell as he stood harshly, whipping his hand around as it transformed into a blaster, and firing at a spot near one of their heads. "_Now!_"

The mechs scrambled out of there, grumbling and growling, but not daring to defy him, and behind their backs, he smirked. Soon, he found himself alone in the medical bay, and began puttering around aimlessly, thinking.

_That fragging femme... She comes along with some insane theory I'm working for Unicron..._ His optics flashed darkly. _I don't work for anyone but myself._ He spotted several tools knocked about, and hissed as his optics landed on the very one he'd watched Scalpel use to sever the connection lines to her wrist port. _What does she know? Barricade knows, and promptly has Scalpel disconnect the lines._

He picked up a cutting tool, _the_ cutting tool used for the job, eyeing it warily. _How could she know? I did work on both sides, for a while. Not for Unicron, as far I knew the ancient God was just a myth. I did it to further this pathetic war._ He abruptly smirked again. _If both sides wear themselves down to nothing, killing the leader of the remaining Decepticons, and gaining control, should be easy. Then I can lead them to true victory over the pathetic Autobots, and rule this universe._

There was a low snarl in the hall, and Sideways spun. He recognized the vocal processors immediately, but briefly contemplated blasting at the bot as he entered, anyways. He could claim it an accident, or use it as a way to move up in the ranks. But...if he missed the target, by even the _slightest_ amount, he wouldn't live long enough to see his plans to fruition.

That was the only reason he remained standing, not battle ready, as the doors slid open and a rather irate Starscream stomped in.

_"Anything?"_

Sideways bowed his head, both in respectful greeting -though the _last_ thing he felt for this moron was respect- and to hide the flash of his optics. _"No, my lord. We are still looking for any clues as to what has made them react this way."_ Knowing the truth or not, Barricade's Dead End's and even Blackout's betrayals were honestly confusing.

_"I don't give a flying defrag _what _caused them to do what they did! I just want them _found_! I will figure out why they've acted as they have and what to do with them _after_ they've been brought to me. I don't care about Dead End or Barricade, but I want Blackout and the femme online! Slag, if he's even still online, do what you want with that Autobot sleaze! Just _bring me _Blackout and the femme!"_ With another snarl, Starscream spun, leaning heavily against the door frame a moment, before hissing lowly and leaving the room.

_"Seems you are still having issues with your system stabilizers, 'Screamer."_ Sideways murmured, sneering in the darkness of the medical bay. _"Better keep an optic on that."_ Dropping the tool casually to the ground, Sideways stepped around it. He stepped right in the pile of ashes that had once been Scalpel, before exiting the medical bay and heading down a hall.

_I'll find that femme, and _I_ will get the information from her. Frag you, Starscream! You're so pathetic, you can't even keep the Decepticons in line. On the upside, their betrayal has solidified my place once again by his side._

With the dark sneer fixed firmly to his facial plates, Sideways exited the labrynth of hallways and transformed, racing towards the nearest town while stretching his sensors as far as they could go.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

_How long was I crying?_ When I finally opened my eyes, which burned like hell and felt rusted shut -possibly literally- I noticed first off that it was considerably darker in the cab. The second thing I noticed, was how quiet it had gotten. No, wait, scratch that. It was quiet before, but I could still hear noise. Now it was _silent_. _And where's Optimus?_

Blinking the burriness from my eyes, and I breathed heavily, shaking my head a little and curling further against the warm surface I was laying against.

Wait..._laying_?

"I see you are awake. Are you feeling better, now?"

It was the deep, more metallic voice, and considering the rumbling baritone, it had to be his real voice. Blinking from my daze, I focused and found myself facing a darkly colored leather surface. It took me a moment to recognize it as the padded back wall of the sleeper. I shifted and felt blankets move.

_Wow, I actually cried myself to sleep?_ That was a first.

I sat up slowly, turning, and startling at the literally glowing blue eyes facing me. Optimus' holographic form ducked his head, and a light on the ceiling came on, illuminating the interior more. "Forgive me. I didn't mean to startle you. You fell into recharge, and I allowed you to recharge in peace. Ratchet has informed me that your systems were strained under the stress you've been feeling."

"Ratchet's probably ready to add to that stress by chasing me down with a wrench." I added hesitantly, wincing. "I take it he's pretty steamed I took off?" It all rushed to the front of my mind, and my body tensed of it's own accord as I remembered everything that led to me being here. I moved to turn around, and my hand fell into a wet spot on the sheets of the 'bed' below me, where my tears must have pooled, and I winced again. "Oh, geez! Sorry!" I brushed at the spot, wringing at it, before realizing the _sheet_ was holographic, and I was wringing at an Autobot...

There was a low, brief chuckle. "It's quite alright. The energon tears will do no harm to my systems, and they will dry into nothing very quickly. As for your question, as far as I am aware, Ratchet's body temperature should not rise high enough for him to...'steam' as you put it." Then there was a pause, as I shot him a raised eyebrow, sitting up on the side of the sleeper bed. "Or was that another 'turn of phrase'?" I nodded. "I see."

"He's not happy I left..."

Optimus adopted an immediately wry look. "When is Ratchet _ever_ happy?" The unexpected reaction made me laugh, and I shook my head. Then I raised my head and looked at him, again, not sure what to say, only to pause at the look on his face. There was another pause. This one almost expectant. When I just continued to regard him silently, he vented softly, eyes softening in a look of concern as he sat next to me. "You have yet to answer my qestion. Are you feeling better?"

"Everyone thinks I'm a traitor." I shook my head, lowering my gaze. "I'm a prisoner, like I just _knew_ was gonna happen. Sunstreaker thinks I'm in love with Barricade-" Realizing then that he might not be the only one, I shot Optimus what I'm sure was a fairly sour look. "I'm _not_! The point is... Everything's going wrong. How can I be 'feeling better'? I just...wanna go home!"

"This is your home now-"

I shook my head again, and he fell silent, eyeing me warily. "No, it's not. This is the furthest fragging thing from a home. It's a _prison._ I'm more a prisoner here than I was with the 'Cons." His eyes darkened then. "I believe a home is where the heart is. It's where you feel comfortable, safe, loved, _wanted_..."

"Bella..." Optimus vented.

"I wanna go home. I'm not a soldier, and if you mean what you said about me not being a prisoner, then you can't keep me there. That's kidnapping, and really _wrong_ for an Autobot to do, if you're so bent on protecting humans." I gave him a look. I'm not sure what it held, probably equal parts pain, anger, confusion, fear.

He eyed me back warily. "Your human government is difficult to work with. I have made few allies with them, and the allies I have all have to answer to a higher up power. That power believes you to be a threat."

"The president's a grade A moron, and everyone knows it." I snorted a little, shaking my head. "You'd be alarmed how quickly everyone went from cheering his name when he was appointed, to loathing his very presence."

"Regardless..."

"So I _am_ a prisoner then." A cold shiver of dread stole through me then. "So...when are you gonna lock me up?"

"We do have _some_ power on this base. We are using it to keep you out of a holding cell or restraints of any kind. I understand you wish to leave. I am...not pleased with your decision, but it is _your_ decision. I will see what I can do, but chances of you getting permission to leave the island are slim at the moment. At least until we can get the connection cables repaired to your data transfer port, and can verify for ourselves that the Decepticons have not damaged you in some way that we are not aware of."

I drew my knees to my chest, a chill settling into my body that was almost frightening. I could almost see the human government storming down the doors, demanding me so they could experiment on me. I mean, the Autobots were _guests_ on the planet, they couldn't very well stop the humans without starting a war on our front, too. Which would be a very bad thing, obviously.

If the humans wanted me, I was a sitting duck here.

I had to escape!

"Isabella-" Optimus' warning tone had my head shooting up. My eyes were burning hotly with fresh tears -would the damn crying ever _end_?- and I watched as his expression turned pained. "I am aware that humans, when feeling trapped, often attempt to escape. Whether to break out, or run away. Either way, I would not suggest attempting it. Your human government would take immediate action to seize you and remove you from our care."

"You mean they're not gonna, anyways?" Sure, it was a bitter tone, but it was the truth. "If they want me, there's nothing you can do to stop them."

He frowned, but maybe he recognized the truth in my words, because he didn't say a thing. Instead, he seemed to think for a very long moment, before sighing deeply. "You are Cybertronian now. Whether you feel it or not, you are one of us, and you have more allies among us than you may believe." His holoform stood then, and his head turned away. A moment later, and he turned back, and odd look in his eyes. "Ratchet wishes to speak with you, in the medical bay. I've given the soldiers orders to leave you to make your own way there, but Will was insistant, for your own safety, of escorting you himself."

I snorted and rolled my eyes.

"Sarah Lennox will be joining him with their sparkling, Annabelle."

_That_ brought me up short. I glanced up at Optimus from where I was curled, and could see the gentle look in his holographic eyes. He smiled ever so slightly, though it looked worried and strained, and nodded, before holding out a hand. I didn't think twice. Grabbing it, I let him haul me to my feet, and I startled as he wrapped his arms around me in a tight, oddly comforting hug.

I couldn't help but smile. "Optimus, has anyone told you, you have this... I don't know, big brotherly or fatherly sense about you?" I wrapped my arms around his neck and hugged him back.

"I believe I _have_ heard that somewhere, yes." His tone was dry. I felt him shift as his holoform sighed, and he tightened his hold. "Many bots have lost loved ones. Mates, creators, sparklings... We have all seen such loss and pain. We've grown together as a family, and love each other dearly. You will grow to know these things as well." As he pulled back, I could see the pain in his eyes. "And for that, I am both sorry and grateful."

"You and me both." _If it happens. Still waiting to be 'accepted', first._ I let my hair curtain my face as I tilted my head down, and waited until he let me go. "Sorry for getting your shirt and sheets all soggy." I cringed internally. Rika would have had a field day with that. "Thanks...for letting me cry on your shoulder."

I felt his hand brush through my hair, and I was oddly reminded of the thought that I hadn't showered in a while. Then I mentally wondered if Autobots ever _needed_ to bathe -other than when really nastily filthy, that is- and if so, did they just _bathe_? Or was there more to it?

Turning my thoughts to the present, I sighed and made my way through the truck. When I got to the front it hit me, it wasn't night. Even as I watched, Optimus let his windows lighten, and I pursed my lips momentarily, before climbing hesitantly out the open door.

"Bella." Will was frowning, but when I glanced over, I was surprised to see it was a more concerned frown. "You okay?"

"Nope." I popped the 'p' in there, and turned towards the door, ignoring the odd stares as I walked through the hangar.

"Wanna talk about it?"

"Nope." Same tone, same popping the 'p'. I made it sound light, but I really _didn't_ want to talk about it. Despite Optimus' warning, I just...couldn't stay here. It would be a one-track, fast-track to losing what was left of my sanity.

The walk was silent. Even as Sarah joined us, handing Annabelle to Will, no one said a word. I was more than aware that I was being stared at, and I couldn't help but glance briefly over at Annabelle.

And that made everything worse. A thousand times worse.

My chest clenched so tightly, I stumbled a little, waving off reaching arms as I nearly dashed into the medical bay. This time, the room was empty, but for Ratchet. He must have seen to move the twins while I was gone, and for once, it barely phased me. Will and Sarah didn't follow me, luckily, and I clenched my eyes shut, trying to ignore the longing and unbelievable pain rushing through me.

"Isabella? Are you unwell?"

_Never. I'll...never be able to have a family, a baby. Sure, if I'm _really_ lucky, I might find some_bot_ to settle down with, but... How long will that take? Will I live long enough for it to happen? Will I be lucky enough for that to happen? Will I ever be comfortable enough with who and what I've become?_

Almost against my will, my mind began shoving images to the forefront of me holding a baby. Some faceless guy, or rather... Sunstreaker's face appeared in my vision, and I nearly reached for a table saw to rectify that issue, before just forcing myself to make it a faceless guy..

He stood next to me, a warm, solid arm wrapped around me. I held a beautiful little baby girl in my arms, staring up at me with adoration and love, from the most innocent, bright blue eyes...

The pain that coursed through me as my heart hummed harshy, had me whimpering. I wrapped my arms around myself, feeling like I was about to come apart at the seams, quite possibly literally, and let out a shuddering breath. It felt like my heart was trying to work it's way out of my chest, and I felt heat flashing through me, blinding me with an overwhelming urge to...to...

To...what...?

A tingling ran through me then, knocking the image out of my mind as I focused immediately on the present.

"Oh, slag!"

Before I could blink, I was being picked up in a pair of giant hands and pressed to a warmth that soothed me in ways that honestly frightened me. I could feel energy crackling in my chest and his, and the warm pulsing of...was that _his_ spark? A large something, probably a finger, prodded lightly at my back, before starting slow, almost calming strokes down my spine.

"W-What's happening?" I shuddered.

"Oh Primus, femme. We've been far too hard on you." Ratchet's voice guided my head up to his face, and I watched, shocked, as he stared down at me with a look of worry. His optics were bright as he ran a single finger down my back, and I leaned against his chest. "You are experiencing something known as spark-calling. It is when the programming of a young femme spark longs to create and carry life, searching for a spark compatible with it. It activates a powerful urge to create a sparkling, have a family, so to speak."

"In other words, what? I'm in heat? I want a baby?" I gasped a little as the heat seemed to ebb and flow. "My biological clock is ticking?" _Oh hell no! Tell me I'm misunderstanding this! I'm in bloody_ heat_?_ I had a feeling if I spent too much time thinking about it, I might literally die of humiliation.

"Quite literally." He mused, frowning. "I often allow myself to forget how young some of my patients are. You may be considered an adult in every society, but you are still quite naive and innocent in much. It is...frightening. I have never seen such innocence, besides that of your species, and never to such a degree." He shook his head. "The feeling will fade within a day or two. It is much like going into heat for femmes, however, the more you deal with it, the easier it will get."

"Was that why my chest felt like it was super sensitized when I brushed it against Sunstreaker's?" _And Sideswipe's Oh Primus! How would that even work? Wait, what am I asking?_ If I kept shaking my head like this, I was going to shake the screws and nuts lose and my head was going to fall off, but I couldn't help it. _Neither of them even _like_ me! Mates is absolutely out of the question! _

But, be that as it may, I couldn't help but wonder...

Did the twins come as a set? Any femme with one twin, did she share with the other? Were they _that_ close? Or was it a femme to _a_ twin?

_WHY _the bloody hell was I even thinking about that?

"Do I dare ask why you are brushing your chest against Sunstreaker's?" Ratchet's optics got, if possible, even brighter, and his hands tightened around me.

"Oh, you know, I thought I'd get myself knocked up so I could have my very own sparkling." My _God_ it was disturbing the idea didn't bother me as much as I thought it would! I listened to the choking sound Ratchet made. "Geez, don't have a sparkling, man!" If I'd been feeling better, I might have laughed. Then I paused. "Wait, is that even possible?" I glanced up at Ratchet, my eyes wide, and blinked. "How does that entire sparkling thing work?"

Then, I yelped, clinging to the front chest lights -huh, gives a whole new meaning to 'healights'- as Ratchet suddenly fell over with an odd, quiet 'click'. I grunted as he hit the ground, causing the entire building to quake, and I ducked for cover a moment, before hesitantly looking up.

"Ratchet?" I leaned up, carefully climbing out from under his hands to stand on his chest and look down at his face. "Ratchet?"

He was out cold. For a moment, I could only stare. He'd been fine a moment ago!

Then all hell broke lose.

Optimus and Ironhide ran into the room, looking around wildly. I spun to face them, still in shock, and found myself the target of those cannons once again. _That's getting a little old._ Ironhide glared at me a long moment, before tilting his head to the side a little. A sharp hiss and several clicks later, he ducked his head down and his cannons disappeared.

"Bella?" Optimus swiftly with a creak of ancient-sounding gears, knelt to one knee. "What happened?"

I looked up at him. I wouldn't be surprised if my eyes fell out, they were so wide. I just..._stared_ at him. Then I looked to Ratchet. Then to Ironhide, who was looking more and more confused. "I..." I looked to offline Ratchet, feeling the pulse of his spark beneath my feet. "I..." My eyes went to Optimus, and my jaw dropped. "_Oh my God,_ _I killed Ratchet!"_

_

* * *

_

_Dear Diary,_

_Ever have one of those 'headdesk' moments? Yeah, well, I'm living one of those. Even as the words slip out, I'm mentally smacking myself. Afterall, I can _feel_ the warmth and pulsing of his spark, meaning I sure as hell _didn't_ kill him. _Then_, Ironhide brings his cannons out yet _again_!_

_Remind me to fill those with silly string one day. I'd like to see him face off a Decepticon with those cannons. 'Ya feel lucky, punk?', and BAM! He shoots the 'Con with silly string. It guarantees he'd never aim them at me again._

_Well, at least not without following through with the threat, anyways._

_Meanwhile, Optimus is sitting here _laughing _his ass off at me, causing Ironhide to lower his weapons without needing to be told. He asks for an explanation, I give it, and now they're _both_ laughing at me._

_Geez! Is it _my_ fault Dr. Minty can't take a joke?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Sept 5, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	45. Conversations and Agreements

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note**: This is just a brief note to the reviewers. I've had two people tell me so far that this story is like Twilight right now, with the angsty stuff.

I do realize this story is angsty right now, and while I do agree it's taking a while to lighten up and Bella's feeling pretty sorry for herself, considering the nature of the issue, it wouldn't feel right to give her one chapter where she's all "Everyone hates me! I suck!" and then have things return to normal the next chapter. So it does take while.

But more importantly, you guys chose the, well...perfect time to mention it because the next chapter or two, things should lighten up fairly considerably.

* * *

**(A Week Later, Normal POV)**

Optimus vented softly as he gazed at the formal human paperwork before him. Optics narrowed and he could have growled, if he hadn't learned a surprising amount of patience by now. _When will the humans learn we are better with mechanical items? A computerized datapad or data packet would have been much more efficient._

He formed his holographic form, and began looking them over, scowling when he recognized custody papers for Isabella Cameron. Part of him felt insulted for her. She wasn't a sparkling, or a youngling. Despite her young age, by comparison to their own millenia of existence, there was no denying she was an adult. She wasn't a piece of property, either.

However, the President of the United States had _finally_ seen things their way. While Bella was still on highly restricted access, and to be watched at all times, she was no longer being seen as a main threat. Perhaps it was his seeing that she wasn't exactly gloating. Or maybe it was the fact one of their own had been returned with her, and both had been damaged. As long as he filled out the papers, he was taking...custody over her.

Like a parent, of sorts.

Anything she did, he would be responsible for. If she left the island, as long as she didn't personally cause any damage, there wouldn't be any issues. However, he knew that wasn't the case. If there was _any_ damage, whether related to her or not, the human government would immediately press the issue of her being a threat, trying to take her once more.

He quickly filled out and signed the papers, before his processor turned to another direction all together.

_She feels like a prisoner here._ The idea hurt his spark more than he cared to admit. He'd come to see the bots as an extended family, and he knew they all felt the same way about each other. She was new to their ways, but a few of the bots had already adapted to her presence, like him, but there were still others who were not comfortable around her.

_Ironhide..._

Optimus vented. _She wants to leave. I know that much. If I don't allow her, I am entirely too certain she will sneak off on her own. If I allow her, at least I will know where she is, will I not?_The idea of her leaving didn't sit well with him at all, but he couldn't find reason not to keep her there. If he tried, it would cause more issues. They already had bots stepping up surveillance of Tranquility...

_And I still need to have a word with Ironhide._Glancing down at a datapad, he narrowed his optics. _About his behaviour towards her. She is clearly suffering, and he must see this._ Shaking his head, he vented and stood, holographic form disappearing. _The papers will be here when I return._He turned and nearly stalked away from them, leaving his quarters, and looking for Ironhide.

* * *

**(?)**

_**'Man this is boring! Why'd we come here, again?'**_

_**'That human saying, 'strength in numbers'. Starscream's gonna be looking for us, and if he finds us, we'll be better prepared with four against, uh...however many he sends after us. Besides, he's one of us. He'd do the same for us.'**_

There was a snort. _**'Unless his original creator is a Starscream supporter, which means his own programming would make **_**him**_**a Starscream supporter.'**_

_**'No, he is not. He follows orders well, but trust me, I've hung around him long enough to know he's **_**not**_**a Starscream supporter. Besides, I never said you two slaggers **_**had**_** to come with me.'**_

_**'Awww, but we wouldn't miss this for the world!'**_

It must have been odd for a police cruiser to growl, because people walking by it paused and moved away, startled. One woman grabbed her curious child, oblivious to the equally as curious optics watching them, guiding it away.

"Vicious, blood thirsty dogs!" She hissed darkly. "A threat to everyone!"

_You have no idea, femme._ Barricade smirked, his holographic lips twitching up as well. Then he spotted a familiar form, and the smirk all but melted off his face. He felt himself turn cold with loathing and near blinding rage, tinged with a _hint_ of respect. _That's him._ _He accomplished what most humans could never comprehend. Very...resourceful, for a human._

The man was clearly in his late forties, to mid-fifties, over halfway through his life in human eyes. He had darker skin, thought Barricade didn't care enough to google what race he might be, and had short dark hair slicked back, with equally as dark eyes. The man glanced around himself almost suspiciously, completely bypassing Barricade, before he stepped out of the butcher shop. He wore an impeccable suit, and brushed it off. _Then_, he froze and cringed.

"Reggie! You forgot your underwear!"

People stopped and stared, and he slowly turned around, his face turning a rather unhealthy shade of white. An elderly, heavy set woman rushed out of the shop with a small bag, and his face flushed to an almost alarming shade of red.

"I tell you, you'd forget your head, if it wasn't attached!" She handed him the bundle. Then she looked around. "I thought you were going to do the laundry. Don't tell me you forgot the rest of the stuff!" Shaking her head, she sighed, either not aware or just ignoring the laughter and snickers around them. "You're a damn lucky boy mommy dearest already washed most of it for you, or you'd be going to work in your jammies."

Barricade could only stare, amused. Over their internal links, Dead End sounded like he was about to offline himself, choking on his laughter, and even Blackout was snorting almost painfully.

"Ma!" Simmons' hand lashed out and he grabbed the bag, ducking his head a little with a horrified look. "Ya don't need to yell! I got it, thanks.!" He hissed, trying to brush off the laughters around them. "And the rest of it's in the car."

"Yeah, well, it better be. I do enough around the house." Simmons slapped a hand over his face and groaned. "And don't you give me that attitude, mister! I'm gonna go get ready to go home now. You finish your laundry and head back, ya hear?" She patted his cheek, before turning and marching back into the shop.

"God, kill me now."

_**'That can be arranged, fleshbag.'**_ Dead End grumbled quietly. _**'Is this douche really the one behind Megatron and Bumblebee getting caught and tortured? He doesn't even have the wit to take care of his pathetically weak cloth armor!'**_

_**'That is what I heard, and what the femme's memory banks confirmed, yes.'**_ Barricade snorted dryly. _**'I will remain here until it is dark and all witnesses have gone off to their little recharge berths. Blackout, follow 'Reggie' from the sky, and keep an eye on him. There's something I don't like about him.'**_

_**'Besides the fact you don't like anything organic?'**_

Barricade smirked, his holographic eyes flashing red. _**'Yes, besides that. When the time is right, I will demolish this pathetic little store of theirs and take back what's mine.'**_

_**'No hurting the fleshbags though, right?'**_

The reminder of Bella's words made Barricade's smirk falter. Blackout didn't know about that, but if they really were going neutrals, they couldn't afford to make enemies of the Autobots. _**'Exactly. Now go. Leave me to my retrieval task.'**_

Without another word, Dead End pulled off the curb to pull surveillance around the area, and Blackout's energy signature left the immediate scanning area, undoubtedly following after Simmons. Barricade's optics landed on the shop, and he began multiple plans to retrieve Frenzy's head with as little damage and unwanted attention as possible.

After all, if the human government, and subsequently the Autobots, were made aware of their location, so would the Decepticons.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

A week. I'd spent seven freakin' days more or less in hiding. Ever since the Ratchet incident, most of the bots now regarded me with amusement. I didn't know if my embarrassing naivety was better or worse, then having them hating me. Either way, a few bots and most of the humans still didn't trust me, so I hid in my room. The stares and glares were bad enough, but the raucous comments and amused little 'sparkling-in-a-femme's-body' comments made it all ten times worse.

I didn't answer it for Mikeala or Maggie, or even the rare occasion Sarah came by. I was just too mortified and annoyed. I didn't answer it for Rika, but she just let herself in anyways, like it was no big deal. I didn't even answer it for Ratchet, who seemed to take a page from Rika's book and just let himself in.

"You need to drink your energon." He held the cup out to me. How many times did this make?

"What, is this like a daily thing?" I frowned, seriously hoping it wasn't. I took the cup, and stared down at the odd liquid inside, contemplating the 'plan' I'd been working on for some time now. It was more or less a rough escape plan, but if I needed daily energon, why waste my time? "How can you even make energon, anyways?"

"It is not easy." Ratchet stood across from my berth, venting deeply. "First, we require a substantial load of irradiated crystals, of a specific makeup. Then, they must have had millenia to soak in the radiation your sun filters down. On top of that, we would need a large amount of them, just to make a small amount of concentrated energon, after refining. Your sun doesn't give the required amount of gamma and beta rays within one Earth century."

I looked at him blankly, trying to wrap my mind around everything he'd just said. However, advanced processor or not, I was still drawing a blank.

He seemed to notice that, too, because he abruptly went quiet and blinked, shaking his head. "It is...a long, complicated process. We were able to find a decent amount of crystals on your Moon, and refined enough energon to bring with us. There is none on Earth, however." His optics went distant. "We will have to make another trip up for the refinery machinery. Perhaps after Soundwave has been dealt with, while the bots are in space..."

"You can battle in space?" I sipped the energon, the liquid both sweet and oddly spicy.

"We _are_an incredibly advanced race." He shot me a dry look. "And we do not require breathing, so yes. We can. As for your earlier question about daily energon, you only require it now to fill your tanks to an acceptable level. Your system has been low, and though it has not affected your performance, you require steady feedings to build your system back up. This should be the last one-"

I could have cried, the relief was so strong.

"And then you will only require monthly feedings. I could have fed you the full amount at once, but energon in it's refined state can be considered... I believe a human term would be 'alcoholic'. To drink that much would have you overcharged-" I nodded in understanding then, causing him to pause in confusion.

"More or less the Cybertronian version of drunk off my arse, right?" I sipped on it some more. Something about energon made it the type of drink you sipped, not chugged.

He nodded after a second, his lip plates twitching. "I believe Sunstreaker has been asking after your well being."

"Pfft!" I snorted and rolled my optics, a rather odd feeling if I do say so myself, and shook my head, draining the rest of the energon and handing him the cup back. The energon immediately created a warm rush through my system. _So much for not chugging. _"As if he really cared." I'd seen him once, and he acted like nothing had happened. He glared at me, not as openly hostile as he had before, and walked right past without a word.

"If he did not care, I do believe he would not have asked." Ratchet was frowning.

"He's been forced to be my guardian. Of course he needs to pretend he cares."

"Have you not heard?"

I tilted my head at him, feeling that familiar tension filling my body.

"Optimus gave Sunstreaker the chance to do as he likes, offering to take you on as his own charge, but Sunstreaker refused. He insisted on taking care of you."

_Had_ I heard that? You'd think it'd be something I couldn't, or wouldn't for that matter, forget.

"Not to mention, Sideswipe has been asking after you, as well."

Sideswipe.. He regained consciousness two days after I made Ratchet pass out with my mentioning carrying Sunstreaker's sparkling. Apparently the thought of a mini-Streaker was too much for him, and despite my own embarrassment, I couldn't help but snicker at the idea. Point is, he and Sideswipe, as far as I'd heard, had been inseparable since their reuniting, and often spent days alone in a private hangar doing...

Well, doing God-knows-what, really.

Hah, Transformers fangirls would probably have had a field day with imagining what those two were doing behind closed doors!

"I have an Autobot-sized door." I shrugged, staring at the floor.

"I do not believe Sunstreaker feels comfortable, coming to look for you. He mentioned saying something that upset you greatly." There was a snort. "I never would have pegged Sunstreaker as the 'awkward' type, but considering it's relating to a femme, I can believe it."

"He's a player." I met Ratchet's optics briefly. "He can have any femme-"

"And yet, _you_are the only femme here, at the moment. The only Cybertronian femme, that is."

"The Arcee triplets should be arriving anytime." I shrugged a little, letting my eyes fall back to the floor.

There was a small hum, and the cup was accepted from me. "Optimus wishes to speak with you. Should I send him in?"

I blinked, and my face scrunched up. "I'm not the principal, you don't have to ask." I gave him another look, before shaking my head. I suddenly imagined a pretty sheepish looking Optimus being led into the room, staring at the floor and dragging his toe plating across it quietly, and shook my head again, trying to dislodge the image.

_I don't know which one's worse. Scolded Prime, or thong-Prime._Immediately, my mind flashed to Optimus doing the catwalk, or pulling a Peter Griffon daisy dukes phase, and I could have cried. _Thong-Prime. Most definitely, thong-Prime._

Ratchet looked at me oddly a moment, before nodding, and his optics went distant. When he snapped back to the present, I'd already raised an eyebrow and he mimicked the look. "Prime will be here momentarily. I suggest you rest for the time being."

"Aww, gee, and here I was hoping to blow the base sky high." I snarked sarcastically, before rolling my eyes. "With everyone actually _expecting_ that, leaving my room's more or less out of the question." I just didn't want to face the glares and whispers. "Don't worry, I'm perfectly happy to grow roots here." _For now_.

When Ratchet actually checked my feet with worry, muttering about how Cybertronians shouldn't be growing roots at all, I couldn't help the amused groan as I informed him it was yet another human saying. He left my room with mutters and a shake of his head, only to be replaced by Optimus, who looked remarkably serious.

"Well, don't you look...grim?"

He raised an optic ridge. "The nature of my news is no laughing matter."

_It never is._ I nodded silently, waiting. He stalked forward, and it took everything I had to ignore the rampant image of a black leather thong over his groin plating. _Oh Primus! Damn those old hens!_ I wonder how he'd react to me darting past him and planting my forehead in the wall behind him? He'd probably call Ratchet back in to check on my sanity.

"So I have spoken to the President. He is not happy with what you know, and the concerns around your unusual release from Decepticon capture. Ratchet has informed me the cables in your wrist have not healed enough for a data transfer." I don't think he missed how I rubbed at the area, at the reminder. "But I have given your earlier request some thought..." He trailed off at whatever my expression held, and that optic ridge seemed to hike even higher. "You _do_ remember which request I am speaking of."

"I've made countless requests, some seriously, and some in jest." _Hey! That rhymed!_ I let my eyes fall shut. "I can think of any number of quests you _could_ be talking about."

"I am speaking of your request to return to your former place of residence." My eyes snapped open at this, to see he was frowning. "I must be honest, I am not pleased with this decision. I do not think it wise. You are more vulnerable out there, and I am certain Starscream will be after you with more vengeance than ever."

I snorted, causing him to pause. "Stars-creamed-himself-" Optimus' optics went dim, before he frowned and tilted his head in confusion. "-wouldn't know what to do with a femme if she bit him in the aft." Rolling my optics, I sighed. "I know I'm not safe there, but I'd _feel_ a hell of a lot freer."

"I...understand and respect that, which is why, to help prove you are _not_ a prisoner, you have been given permission to leave the island and return to your 'apartment'. However, this comes with the stipulation that you report to the base at least once a day, to make sure we are aware of your health and status. And you are not to leave the city."

"But I can go home?" It bothered me, that it bothered him, that I didn't see the base as 'home', but more than anything, I wanted to sleep in _my_ bed. I wanted to cook, for the sheer thrill of _cooking_. I wanted to sit and watch TV, and watch my movies, which were still in existence. Not the Transformers movies. The others from my former fandoms. I wanted to ride the bus... My eyes narrowed then. "Are you gonna become a bus again?"

He blinked, but then smirked ever so slightly. "Will I have to?"

"Only if you wanna hear more old ladies going on about you in a thong." I muttered, blushing when he tilted his head curiously. _Never mind! Oh Primus, never mind!_ I thought about it a moment, before shrugging. "It's up to you."

"Shall I send Sunstreaker with you?"

"No!" I think my immediate answer startled us both, and I ducked my head. I remember the harsh words and angry glowers. I didn't really want to deal with those, just now. "Um, he...he needs time to fix his twin-bond with Sideswipe. Besides, I think he's had enough of the troublesome femme. I'll..." The idea of not having him around filled me with an odd longing I just didn't want to admit. At the same time, however, I worried that if I said 'Yes', it'd undo _any_ progress I still had with that bot.

Though, all things considered, we might well be back at square one, and even have gone _back_ ten steps from that point.

"I would feel more comfortable if you had a guardian. I will speak to my troops and see who will volunteer." I looked up at him, and saw the look in his eyes. I wasn't getting away without a guardian. That much I knew.

"Alright. As long as they _volunteer_, and it's _not _Ironhide. If he points those blasted, no pun intended, cannons at me one more time, I swear to Primus I'm gonna fill every chamber in those things with silly string." I felt my eyes narrow as Prime raised an optic ridge. "And I am _not_ joking or making idle threats."

He nodded, the smirk back on his face. "I understand as much. I have spoken to him on your behalf, and he promises me he will not arm himself at your presence again, unless you are actually pointing a blaster at a fellow bot with the clear intent to follow through."

"Pfft! He'd shoot me and say 'I thought she had a blaster!', or 'Oops, my finger slipped...', and we both know it."

Now, as Optimus' smirk faded, his optics narrowed dangerously and flashed. "There are very few femmes left, at present. We regard _any _femme with great honor. Ironhide would do well not to blast one without just cause." There was a low growl in his voice. "Regardless of how some bots may act around you, Isabella-" I would have corrected him, but something in his tone and look stopped me cold. "We would not actually harm you. You _will_ see this, once I am able to connect to your memory banks and confirm your story for myself."

I could only nod. I'd seen Optimus pissed before. I'd seen him stern, but to actually have him change from the calmer, gentler bot to this sterner, colder bot actually frightened me. He almost reminded me of a kinder, saner Megatron on a good day. I'm not sure if it was my words that did it, or not, and I could only shrink back at the feeling of him towering over me, that hit me.

As if that was the key, his optics suddenly widened, and he stepped back, seeming to deflate. "I... I apologize." He lowered his head, a look of blatant shame coming over his features. "I did not mean to frighten you."

"What the bloody _hell_ was that about?" I was embarrassed to admit that I squeaked the question, rather than demanding it.

"It is a...long, painful story."

I took a page out of Will's book then, tilting my head as I straightened, slowly. "Wanna... Um, do you...want to talk about it?"

He looked at me a long moment. "What do you know of a femme commander by the designation of 'Elita-one'?"

And _that_opened up a whole new can of worms. I could only stare at him a very long moment, before sighing. That was the question, wasn't it? More or less everything I knew was here say, but with some bots, it was _more _here say than anything else, and _she_ was one of them. I'd have to watch what I said, around Prime.

This wasn't just _any_ bot we'd be discussing.

This was _his_ mate.

There was _no_ doubt in my mind.

* * *

**Written** : Sept 8, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	46. Chats and Chilling

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I don't own 'Sweet little Bumblebee'. If I did, I'd be curling up to sleep on his chest plates every night. On that note, I don't own the song, either. ;)

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Have you ever wondered about the bots and their mates? Maybe Optimus and Elita-one? I mean, Bay brought Ironhide's Chromia in, in the second movie, but whose mate was Arcee? _Was_ she even somebot's mate? What about Flare-up? Where was Moonracer, and Optimus' Elita-one?_

_I know _I _wondered about it. I mean, did she live, or die? Was she out there somewhere? _Were_ they mates, or just lovers caught up in a war? _

_So many people had so many questions, but I... I think I was about to find out the truth, one way or another. I just...had to watch what I said and asked._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

I could only stare at him, silently, trying to piece together a coherent sentence that wouldn't end up hurting him. After all, there was only heresay on his relationship with Elita. What if I said the wrong thing and hurt him? Or made him angry?

It seemed I didn't need to say anything at all. His optics flashed, and he seemed to almost sink in on himself. "You do know of her." I nodded quietly, though he hadn't been asking, and right before my eyes, the hardened Autobot leader seemed to melt down into nothing more than a grieving, young mech. "What...do you know of her?"

"Um, only rumors and stuff. She wasn't in the movies, that I'm aware of." I could have cursed when he sank down onto the berth next to me, shuttering his optics in pain. "That doesn't mean she's not online!" Then I realized, for all I knew, she _was_ offline and he _knew_ it. "Does... Does it?"

He vented deeply. "I do not know. Elita-one was the femme commander in charge of a large contingent of Autobot forces, made up of our femmes and most of our aerialbots. They were the best fighters, and did a lot of damage to the Decepticons during the war."

I raised my hand as he spoke, and it hesitated over his shoulder armor. I watched the cables shift ever so slightly, whenever he shifted, and blinked, my eyes burning and my vision blurring with tears. Ever so gently, I placed my hand on his shoulder, stroking the armor softly. _Oh, Primus, no._ The way he spoke of them, the pain, it couldn't have meant anything good.

"The shift in power happened when one night, most of our combined forces held up in the Cybertronian equivalent of a 'bomb shelter'. We'd been fighting for...the equivalent of multiple Earth years, and our systems would not take put off recharge cycles anymore. Those that could took up watch."

Slowly, I moved my hand to his, wrapping my fingers around the warm, oddly soft leather cushioning of his palm, and I felt him freeze a moment. I watched as his expression cleared; he stared at my hand in confusion, before a look of realization came over his features and he shot me a brief look of gratitude, his fingers squeezing back.

Maybe hugging had taught him a thing or two. He recognized the gesture of support and comfort for what it was.

"A spy snuck in. We are not certain who it was, but somehow they managed to slip past our guards and set a very powerful electro-magnetic bomb. It was set to disrupt the functions of our bodies, including our sparks, and no one was aware of it until it was too late."

"No..." I shook my head, already guessing where this was heading.

"Only a handful of our troops escaped, and less than ten percent of those who didn't survived. Everything was too chaotic." He vented. "Our troops, both surviving, injured and otherwise, ended up scattered. I... I had thought all femmes offline because of that blast."

"Until I mentioned the Arcee triplets?"

He nodded. "Yes. To this day, I am not aware of what troops survived and what didn't."

"So you don't know if Elita..." I trailed off and he shook his head, his hand squeezing mine tightly. "Oh, Optimus..." I sighed heavily, trying to imagine the pain he was going through, not knowing if the one he loved was alive or not. Then something occurred to me. "I might be off base here, but can't sparkmates sense each other? I mean, sense their sparks?"

He lifted his head slowly, blinking through misted optics, before shaking his head. "I am...not... I believe Ironhide would be the better one to ask. He is the only mech sparkmated."

"So he knew Chromia was alive?"

Now his expression cleared, and he looked up at me, before he nodded. "Ah, yes, that was part of your 'fandom'?" I nodded, and he returned the gesture.

"Wait... He's the _only_ one sparkmated?" I blinked, frowning. "Then you..." He winced sharply, and my mouth snapped shut of it's own accord. "I'm sorry." I reached out then, wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling him against me, so his face would rest against my chest.

There was nothing romantic in the gesture. There was no odd tingling as his metallic frame came into contact with my own. There was no immediate noticing the warmth of his body, or the electrical hum I felt in the twins. This was only a gesture of comfort, to me.

He resisted only briefly, before allowing me to pull him to me, and he almost seemed to melt in the hold, as alien as the gesture must have been to him. "I love Elita with all of my spark. I believe, given the chance, we would have made each other quite happy as sparkmates." It was so odd to hear the pain in his quiet, baritone voice. That just made it all the worse for me. "But I never had the chance to ask her. She was gone off to war, our contingents separated, before either of us really knew what was happening."

"But you were a Prime, weren't you? Couldn't you have ordered them to wait?"

He shook slightly. "I was a Prime, but I was still answering to a higher power. An ancient Prime with more power than even I. I remember the look of sorrow in his optics, as he gazed at me, and it never made sense until after we were separated. He knew, but he did what he had to for the sake of our people."

"Just like you do on a daily basis." I stroked a hand down the back of his helmet, feeling him breathing against me. I might have been a child to some, but I could understand pain. I didn't have to _experience_ it first hand to know what spark-shattering pain _that_ sort of thing could cause, and I didn't want him to go through it alone. "She has to be out there. If the Arcee triplets survived, there's a chance she did as well, right?"

"I...truly...hope so."

_You and me both, big bot._ I didn't say anything as I cradled his head against me. Sure, there was a random thought about his massive size as compared to my own, but I kept quiet, stroking the back of his helmet as he rested against me.

I'm not sure how long we stayed that way, but just as my back was starting to ache, he sighed again, before straightening.

"I apologize for that." He seemed almost embarrassed. "I had no intention of...breaking down like that. I only wished to know if you knew of...Elita."

"Trust me, you didn't break down. Me running to you and interrupting your bath was breaking down." I shot him a semi-amused look, and felt the relief as he smiled ever so slightly. "Besides, if it helps to talk about it, I'm here. You've been nothing but kind to me, all things considered. I'm only too happy to return the favor, if I can."

He eyed me a moment, before nodding. "There is a ship setting off shortly."

The change in topic startled and threw me. "I thought everyone travelled by plane?"

He seemed to pause, before shaking his head. "We only have one aerialbot at the moment, and would rather he remain on or near the base. The other planes would require pilots and soldiers as guards. The ships come with Navy seals..." He paused again. "Although I don't see how seals can help us..."

"Wrong 'seals'." I murmured wryly, causing him to shake his head with a groan.

"These Earth puns, and 'turns of phrases' will be the offlining of us all." He muttered darkly. "However, if you wish to return home, I must see to finding a volunteer guardian for you, if you do not wish for Sunstreaker to accompany you."

"I'd rather he spend more time with his brother." I murmured softly, ducking my head.

"Hmm... I am certain Sideswipe should be cleared for _light_ duty as of now. But again, I will _ask_. You may wish to pack some things, or speak to your human allies before disembarking. I believe as Jazz likes to put it, you and Rika are 'joined at the hip'."

I snorted a little, finally relaxing. _So I'm not really a prisoner?_ It was hard to accept. After everything, I'd been _so_ sure that I was going to be locked up and 'examined', but Optimus seemed to be trying _so_ hard to help me out.

"I will meet you in the main hangar in two hours." Optimus stood heavily, joints creaking as he turned to me. "Thank you, Bella, for listening." He bowed his head, and when he raised it again, I was surprised to see something...lighter in his optics. I couldn't explain it, but there almost seemed to be something freer in him now.

I nodded at him, feeling oddly lighter myself. Despite everything else going on, I finally felt like I had a true friend here, and I felt horrible I didn't see it before. Standing, I moved over and hugged him tightly. "Anytime, big bot. Anytime."

**(Tranquility)**

So Rika came with me, obviously, chosing to stay at my place as a kind of watch dog, if you would. I even told her that, that she reminded me of a watch dog, and you know her response?

"You say I'm a bitch like it's a bad thing."

I laughed. I felt lighter, and happier, but nervous as hell at the same time. I remembered that the last time I came here, the place didn't feel so much like _home_, with all the changes, but as far as the base went, I'd rather be here than there.

And imagine my surprise when I wasn't the only one wanting off the island! Sure. I knew it was a possibility, but I didn't think the bots would seriously consider the requests, all things, well...considered. I was one thing. I was a Cybertronian now, with the ability to shift my shape, and at least somewhat defend myself.

Mikeala? Sarah? Judy? Maggie? Rika?

Not so much.

But on the upside, they turned it into a massive girl's night out. Sarah and Judy apologized for being wary. Mikeala just acted like we were old friends. Maggie never once changed from how we were _before _I'd been captured, and the same could be said for Rika.

As for our guardians... Ironhide came along, for one.

I couldn't help but glance out the window, the curtains drawn back to let the bots have clear view of us in the living room. My apartment was a small bachellorette apartment, but apparently the building complex had been emptied under the pretenses of gas leakage. The government bought it, and if there were any attacks, at least more innocents wouldn't be involved.

But that also meant that each girl could occupy their own apartment near mine for the night, and we could hang out in the day. It was...actually really nice. I could hang out with people who cared about me and didn't glare at me every second, and avoid almost all of the ones who loathed me.

"He's not gonna bite, you know."

I shot Sarah a look. "Someone's grown on you."

She opened her mouth, then shut it again, pursing her lips as she looked out the window. "Well, he's been treating me with a lot of respect. It's kinda...surprising, and really awkward. He hovers over me whenever I have Annabelle, but when I'm alone, I still catch him watching me."

"He's protective." I felt a tiny smile on my face. My eyes went back to the truck, and I noticed the man inside, staring our way. I also noticed that gone was his glare, but he would stare at me occasionally warily, like he was waiting for something.

Then my eyes shot to the twin Chevys across from him, just as one swung his door open and clipped the other. I raised an eyebrow. "And _how_ did Optimus think it was a good idea to send _them_, considering we're trying to stay _under_ the radar?" I pointed at the twins, who were flapping their doors like swords at each other, swatting and slapping.

"En garde!" Rika piped in as Skids whacked Mudflap particularly hard.

The girls busted up laughing, even as the truck across from them gunned it's engine, and they immediately settled down.

"See? Told you Ironhide makes a great babysitter." I bit my lip as he glared at them, and the girls behind me snickered.

"So, isn't this nice?" Sarah sipped on her tea, and Mikeala held her cold soda in her hands. "We get away from the soldiers... Well, most of them, and can relax and have a regular girl's night out."

"Yes, it's wonderful." Judy nodded, leaning back against the couch with her own soda. "Now, what are we going to do?"

"_Movie night_!" Rika squealed, causing the rest of us to jump. Mikeala choked on her pop, and Sarah sat her tea cup down before she dropped it. Judy just spilled her soda all over herself, and we all shot her looks. "Oops. Sorry."

"If you weren't such a sweetheart, I'd be very annoyed." Judy pouted as she stood. "You girls pick out a movie, I'm going to get into a clean shirt." She quickly made her way out of my apartment, through the back door, and waved at Ironhide on her way past.

He only raised an optic ridge, and gave what looked like a silent grunt as acknowledgement.

I giggled a little, pointing his direction as I turned back to the girls. Then I gave a gruff grunt of my own. "Me Ironhide. You annoying."

Sarah hiccupped her laughter, and Mikeala cackled a little, shaking her head.

"I bet you're happy to have sweet little Bumblebee around." I paused then as a song ran through my mind. Without even hesitating, I began to sing. "Sweet little Bumblebee, I know what you want from me. Dup-i-dup-i-do-la-da. Dup-i-dup-i-do-la-da. Sweet little Bumblebee, more than just a fantasy. Dup-i-dup-i-do-la-da. Dup-i-dup-i-do-la-da. My heart skips a beat, when you walk in the room. I go boom, boom, boom. You go zoom, zoom, zoom. You're my playboy, playtoy, love you my friend. I wanna be with you until the end." I trailed off then, realizing the girls were watching me, and blushed. "What?"

"Oh. My. God." Mikeala's jaw dropped. "They have _songs_ after the bots?" She leaned forward. "Oh my God!" I didn't respond, because it was a long story. Not so much a song for Bee, as it was a song used in a vide on Youtube of Bee. She squealed and pulled her cell phone out. "You gotta sing that for Bee! Please?" She dialed a number and held the phone out, a pleading look in her eyes.

I fumbled a moment, feeling like my face was gonna explode. "I can't sing!" I squealed the words, even as I heard a click on the other end and a brief 'Good morning' song playing that I didn't really recognize. "Um, Bee? It's afternoon." I stared at Mikeala with wide eyes. "Oh, come on! I'll teach you the song, and _you_ can sing it!"

"Aww, _pleasssseeeee_?"

"Oh, no!" I took the phone, leaning back. "Not that!" I held up my hands, crossing my pointer fingers like a cross with my lips trembling. "Anything but that!" She must have known what was talking about, because she widened her eyes even more and batted her eyelashes. "Nooooooooo! Not the dreaded puppydog eyes!" I turned away, laughing, and the girls all erupted around me.

I could hear the cute little warbles over the line and giggled as I raised the phone. "Sorry, Baby-bot. I, uh, was telling the girls about songs from my, uh dimension" _Wait, no I wasn't..._ I shook my head and sighed. "-that were modeled after the Transformers. You know, you guys?" There was a little metallic 'uh-huh' and I might have considered he _could_ have been being sarcastic, and probably wouldn't have cared except...

Come on... This was Bumblebee!

"Well I sang a little bit of one to the girls, and Mikeala seems to think you _have_ to hear it." I took a deep breath, my face tense and hot, and grimaced at the girls, before shaking my head. I skipped a little of the song, chosing to sing another part to him instead. I didn't remember _all_ the lyrics, after all. "I started to cry, when you walked out that door. You go bye, bye, bye. I go why, why, why? I'm so lonely and only waiting for you, to come back and tell me, I love you."

The girls all had smiles on their faces, encouraging me to keep singing, but I skipped a little piece when the words escaped me. If they noticed the jump, they didn't show it.

"Sweet little Bumblebee, I know what you want from me. Dup-i-dup-i-do-la-da. Dup-i-dup-i-do-la-da. Sweet little Bumblebee, more than just a fantasy. Dup-i-dup-i-do-la-da. Dup-i-dup-i-do-la-da." I stuck my tongue out at Mikeala then, causing her to smile even more. "Well, that's about it." I giggled nervously, that hot feeling sticking in my cheeks.

I heard a sweet little 'awwwwwwwwww' over the phone line, and couldn't help but repeat the sound. Even over the phone the little bot was _so_ cute! Then I startled, nearly dropping the phone, when I heard my voice coming back at me, singing the same song.

"You _recorded_ it?" I felt like I was about ready to bash my head off of the nearest inanimate object. "Bee! Oh, come on! I suck at singing!"

"No you don't!" Judy was smiling as she walked over. "That was really sweet. And it really suits that little cutie."

I ducked my head. I could hear my voice singing, through Bumblebee's systems, and okay, it wasn't _that_ bad, but I sure as hell was no Mariah Carey. "Okay, well, that's the _only_ song_ anyone's_ getting me to sing, so you'd better lock that recording up nice and tightly, Baby-Bee."

"Thank you. Thank you very much!" Elvis' voice came over the phone.

I snorted loudly, and doubled up laughing, nearly dropping Mikeala's phone as I handed it back to her. "Oh dear God! Elvis lives!" I wondered, briefly, as the girls cracked up again, if any of the bots knew about the 'alien' rumors surrounding that man.

* * *

**Written** : Sept 8, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	47. Decisions, Decisions

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : If I'm doing more than one POV change in a chapter, don't expect a diary entry. Just an FYI. I know they're not really all that necessary, so... OH! And I forgot to put this in earlier, but I also want to thank **Maverick1997** (hope I spelled that right) for pointing out a spelling error in my previous chapter. :) Thank you. :)

* * *

**(A Few Days Later, Normal POV)**

Barricade smirked to himself as he glanced into the backseat. His plan had gone all too well. Not only had he destroyed a hidden Sector-7 office, and taken an agent out of the picture, he'd retrieved what he meant to. Even now, the little bot was in his backseat, his self-repair systems repairing the damage to his offlined body, which Barricade had recovered and hung onto just in case.

_"S-S-Slagging 'Bots!"_ Frenzy hissed brokently, optics flickering as he lay still, cords moving slowly to reattach where they'd been severed. Luckily his spark was in his head, or he'd truly be fragged.

_"Watch yourself. They are no longer our enemy."_

Frenzy jerked a little and squealed in pain, before shooting Barricade a look. _"F-F-Fleshbags hurt F-Frenzy! F-F-Fleshbags pay!'_

Barricade growled a little, optics flashing. _"Humans are Autobot allies, and were only defending themselves. You would have done the same if you had been the one under attack."_ He paused then, noting he was _defending_ the very species he shouldn't have cared about. Then again, that woman with her sparkling had gotten to him before.

They were young, naive, yes, but sentient. Did they really deserve to be enslaved? Ignored, yes. They weren't worth the time of day in his opinion, but to brutally destroy a species for what...what reason? The Allspark was gone, the shards not enough to bring back Cybertron. From what he knew about what was coming, the Fallen would fail, too.

He was tired. Tired of this fruitless war, and following a mech who cared only for his own aft._ "We have ended our role in this war. Do not insert us back into it, Frenzy. This is our chance for peace, finally."_

_"P-P-Peace?"_ Frenzy's expression lightened. _"F-Frenzy don't k-k-know peace."_

_"No, I don't suppose you would."_ Barricade's expression softened as much as it could, considering the bot it was coming from. Frenzy had been created shortly after the war began. He was no sparkling, and all he'd ever known was killing. _"But this is your chance to experience it. We will be remaining in this city. I have...a duty to complete."_

_"'Cade w-w-watch human A-Autobot a-allies?"_

_"One."_ Barricade nodded, venting softly. _"A femme. One who reminds me all too much of Speedster."_ Frenzy's optics brightened, and Barricade's holographic form leaned over the back of the seat, looking troubled. _"I have no idea how the Autobots will treat her. We rescued her, but may have set her up for a harsh existence at that base, if they believe her a possible spy. I do not doubt their gung-ho weapons specialist will immediately perceive a threat where there is none. I had Dead End check, and it seems the femme has been spotted in town, without her usual guardian. She may have been abandoned, or there may be other bots watching her. We do not know just yet."_

He was admittedly troubled by the concern he felt for her. Perhaps it was her naivety. Because of what she was, she was now part of their war, but she hadn't been born into it. She didn't ask for this, nor did she strike him as a seasoned killer. He wasn't sure if it was her resemblance to his sister, her naivety, her way with words, or all of the above.

_"S-Starscream?"_

_"He will be after us all, but he intends to force himself on the femme to breed a new army."_

Frenzy hissed, optics brightening and body going rigid. _"F-F-Force not D-Decepticon w-way."_

_"No, but it's his. Why do you think we left?"_

_"We protect f-femme?"_

_"Hmmm..."_ Barricade nodded, glancing around. His true body was in cruiser form, and he relaxed with his systems running at minimal, but his sensors running at full. Blackout was on watch tonight, but he and Dead End were restless, wary about offlining, even to recharge.

Not to mention, the shouting and banging coming from inside Dead End was enough to drive anyone over the edge. He growled lowly. _**'Silence the imbecile!'**_

_**'You try! I've fed him, as ordered, given him a 'potty break' as ordered, and he still refuses to quit his incessant bitching! Nothing pleases this fleshie!'**_

Barricade snorted a little. _**'Then tranquilize him. Tomorrow we'll head to the femme. There are bound to be Autobots around her. We'll release him there and tell them of his hobby as 'RoboWarrior'.'**_ There was silence a moment, and soon the kicking and screaming lessened, before fading. _**'Much better. You didn't offline him, did you?'**_

_**'Can I?'**_ The excited response had 'Cade smirking. _**'Oh, can I? Can I really? Please? Pretty please?'**_

_**'No. Not unless you want Ironhide to give you a Cybertronian 'prostate exam' with his cannons.'**_

There was a visible shudder. _**'No thanks, trying to quit.'**_

_**'Then keep the male online for now.'**_ With a quiet chuckle, Barricade turned back to Frenzy, noting that the little mech was working well.

_"F-Femme p-pretty?"_

He started, staring down at Frenzy with wide eyes, before he raised an eyebrow. _"Femme...attractive, yes, but I am not interested in her that way. She...is far too much like my little sister."_

_"Then F-Frenzy help 'Cade p-p-protect little sister f-femme."_

Looking down at the bot, 'Cade smiled a little. 'Little sister'. It was...awkward, and still a little painful to use the term, but he'd be lying if he said it didn't sound pleasing. Then again, he was a 'Con, and lying was what they did best. Still... _"I appreciate that, but for now it might be best to make sure you're fully repaired, first._" With a nod from Frenzy, Barricade turned and settled down in his seat, deactivating his holographic form. He scanned the area once more, before growling under his breath and attempting to get some recharge.

Still, one thought kept swirling in his processors, giving him a warmth he hadn't felt since he and Speedster used to race.

_Little sister..._

_

* * *

_

**(Base)**

Optimus felt it immediately, the lack of the femmes. He also didn't fail to notice how quiet the base had become, without Ironhide glowering and snarling, and the twins wrestling all over the place. However, that only meant, chances were they were 'wrestling' where ever they were at the moment, which wouldn't be good for the femmes.

Or for the twins, if they happened to annoy_ any_ of said femmes.

He wandered down the hall and paused at the sound of music. Or rather, there was no music, but a sweet femining voice was singing. At least, to Earth culture, she was singing. It was pleasant to his audios. Not 'excellent', like some of the more classical music Jazz had insisted he listen to, but definitely pleasing. As he approached the main hangar, he peered inside to watch as Bumblebee bounced his head, listening to the music.

It hit him then, the song was about a 'Sweet little Bumblebee'. Raising an optic ridge, he wandered in, gazing inquiringly at the little scout.

"'Parently, Bells' got a slaggin' good voice." Jazz smirked at Optimus and Bumblebee gazed up at him with happiness shining in those bright blue optics. "'E's been playin' dat music fer several Earth hours now."

"That is...Bella singing?" Optimus tilted his head a litle. He registered a ping over his internal systems and opened the file he'd been sent, reading over it, and his optics widening. "I see."

_**I started to cry, when you walked out that door. You go bye, bye, bye. I go why, why, why? I'm so lonely and only waiting for you, to come back and tell me, I love you.**_

Optimus chuckled a little as Bumblebee's door wings bounced with his steps, as he made his way out of the hangar, repeating the song over and over, and even humming to it the best his broken voice would allow. It had been far too long since he'd seen the little bot so happy, and it warmed his spark to see the good Bella brought to them, even when she didn't realize it. Shaking his head, he turned and regarded the twins across the hangar, looking rather displeased.

Venting, he shook his head, glancing to Jazz. "How are you feeling, old friend?"

"Like I got torn in half." Jazz rubbed at his midsection a little. "Still kinda hurts, but Dr. Minty says I'm good."

With a nod, Optimus chuckled and rested his hand on Jazz's shoulder. _That name has been spreading. Poor Ratchet. _"It is good to have you back, Jazz." He patted the smaller mech's shoulder, before moving towards the yellow and red twins, raising an optic ridge at Sideswipe's color choice.

After all, it was nothing like Bella had said he'd be. But she also mentioned that he'd originally been red, and the movie director changed him. It could also have to do with the fact the 2009 Corvette model wasn't out yet, so Sideswipe had taken on a red Ferrari, identical model to that of Sunstreaker.

"I'm her guardian." Sunstreaker glared at Optimus as the larger bot approached, shooting only a brief glowering glance after Bumblebee's dancing figure. "I still don't understand why you sent those two slaggers. They failed last time." He almost snarled the words.

Optimus felt his optics narrow and straightened, allowing his presence as Prime to warn the younger mech to watch himself. "Bella expressly requested you remain here to bond with Sideswipe, and to be _fair_ to them, Sunstreaker, they were not ordered to be her guardians. However, you were. Would you appreciate if I said it was _your_ fault she'd been captured, for abandoning her?" His optics narrowed even more as Sunstreaker lowered his head. _I don't have to say a word, however. You already feel that way, don't you?_

"Sir, we feel we should be watching for her." Optimus regarded Sideswipe with a raised optic ridge, and the red mech rubbed at his still damaged arm a little. "My brother's taken her on as a charge." The look on his facial plates said it all. He felt the same shock and disblief that everyone else did, initially hearing this news. "So... So I feel we should go after her."

"Yo! And what about me! I was told to watch over her, too, ya know!"

The new voice had all three mechs looking down. Sideswipe's optics narrowed at Wheelie, while Sunstreaker growled warningly. However, Optimus turned and kelt down, regarding the mech with a surprisingly calm look. The humans had adapted to the mini-'Con better than the larger ones. Mostly because of his size. He was seen as more harmless than the larger bots.

Not completely defenceless, as one soldier with a _still _burned knee found out the hard way, but not _as_ much of a danger.

"Forgive me, Wheelie. I honestly did not even think of you when I sent her away. I apologize for that. However, unless you are actively volunteering to watch over her because she means something to you _other_ than a duty-" He shot the twins a pointed look, before turning his attention back to the mini-bot. "Then I would suggest remaining on base. She is highly sensitive, and some of the things she's experienced on this base have hurt her deeply."

"I probably understand that femme better than any of you! I was there! I saw the poor femme tortured and harassed! I heard her screams!" The little former 'Con narrowed his crimson optics and folded his arms over his chest plates. "She begged them to leave Sideswipe alone!"

No one missed the way Sideswipe stiffened at the reminder.

"That's right." Optimus' optics flashed. "You were there, weren't you? Would you agree to a data pack transfer of your memories at the time, so that I may have a better understanding of what happened?"

Wheelie seemed to hesitate, before shrugging. He held out his wrist, a smaller data transfer port shining green, and Optimus selected a smaller cord from his own wrist, plugging it in. He went through Wheelie's memories, suddenly realizing...

Bella was all too right.

About, quite possibly, everything.

He watched snippets of memories, before determining them too painful for Wheelie to relive as well, before finding the ones he needed and downloading a copy. He detatched the cord and looked down at the smaller bot, seeing a vulnerability about him, before the little former 'Con could cover it up.

"Thank you, Wheelie. I appreciate your willingness to cooperate." Optimus' expression was grim as horrific flashes flitted through his processors. He watched femmes and mechs alike, screaming in horror and terror, before they were brutally offlined. One was a crimson-opticed femme who held Wheelie close to her, before an ancient-looking Decepticon descended on her, nearly ripping the youngling from her arms, before ripping her spark from her chest right before him.

His spark ached painfully, and Optimus placed a hand over the spot, before lowering his optics. Being raised as a Decepticon, Wheelie would see any act of sympathy as pity, and would likely act defensively, so Optimus only bowed his head to the small bot in respect.

"Sir." Optimus turned and looked up at Sideswipe, who bowed his head. "I volunteer to watch over her. She is not a 'duty' to me. I remember her catching me when I was going to fall, even though she was hurt. I remember her giving in to their demands because she didn't want to see me tortured. I remember the agony in her voice when she'd scream at them to stop torturing me." He shuddered. "I don't remember a lot, but I remember her voice. The pleading. We didn't even know each other, and she did whatever she could to help me."

"I volunteer as well." Sunstreaker's optics were thoughtful and pained as they sat on his brother, who still carried himself with a limp. "If she were just a 'duty' to me, I never would have kept her on as a charge." Slowly, his optics narrowed and hardened as they landed on Wheelie. "He comes too. He wants to, and he can watch her in her 'house' when we can't."

"She will be better protected this way." Sideswipe put in. "Besides, if she really left to avoid all the harsh looks and whispers, as you said, then I can think of any number of nicer bots to leave her with, than Ironhide. Ratchet comes to mind. Megatron on a good day also comes to mind."

Optimus raised his optic ridge again, forcing his facial plates to remain impassive as he stared at the bots. Megatron on a good day? That one would stick in his processors for a while. He glanced down to Wheelie, who only nodded in agreement, and vented. "Alright. The three of you have persmission to leave as soon as possible. Keep me informed."

"Thank you, sir." Sideswipe nodded his head, and surprisingly, Sunstreaker also straightened, nodding his head a little as well, before the twins turned and headed off.

"Hey! Wait for me! We ain't all over fifteen feet tall, with wheeled feet, ya know!" Wheelie wheeled after them as fast as his own little wheels could go, only to yelp when Sideswipe turned and picked him up. "I can walk!"

"Not fast enough." Came Sunstreaker's clipped tone.

"My, someone's in a hurry to get to his femme."

Sunstreaker went rigid and spun on the little bot with a growl, but Sideswipe tensed and shared a look with his brother. The two bots glared at each other a long moment, before Sunstreaker snarled and transformed, speeding out of the room.

"Wheelie, generally the Autobots are a nice group. But taunting Sunstreaker like that will end up with you slagged about six different ways before you know what happened to you." Sideswipe vented and walked out of the hangar, his voice disappearing as he went. "Gotta admit, though. You've got spark."

"Huh, funny. I said the same thing to Bella."

There was a low, brief chuckle. "I believe it."

Optimus watched as they went, his optics softening. Somehow, despite his gruffer exterior, Wheelie had managed to plant himself well within Autobot ranks. Jetfire saw him as an ally. Bumblebee accepted him, after learning the reason why he was here. Ratchet didn't give two frags either way, as long as he stayed out of trouble, and he? Well, Optimus himself only appreciated the fact that this new femme was bringing him new bots and allies all the time.

He just hoped things would clear up, because he truly felt she had a home here. Now, if only _she_ would see that.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

I thought coming home would be easier. My job was gone, I'd missed far too much time, and that left me with way too much time on my hands. I went to the park, but felt restless whenever I spotted a cruiser driving by, or any silver car for that matter. I didn't miss Ironhide or one of the twins, always on my ass.

I did notice Optimus wasn't here. At least that I'd seen.

Couldn't sleep well at night. I don't know if Cybertronians even _have_ dreams, but every time I closed my eyes, I felt... I felt like I was back in 'Con care, listening to Sideswipe's agonized screams. I could see Sunstreaker standing before me, glaring at me with hatred and snarling at me about being a 'Con spy.

Comfortable bed or not, I just couldn't recharge.

Finally, after the third night in a row, I groaned, and got up. I got dressed in jean cutoffs and a tank top, before heading out of the apartment, barefoot. I felt the cold sand under my feet as I walked towards the truck. First I glanced towards the twins, wondering if I even wanted to bother with them.

Before I could make my way over, however, the truck seemed to shift ever so slightly, and a light came on in the cab. I startled, finding Ironhide sitting there in his own driver seat, watching me with a raised optic ridge.

"What are you staring at?"

I opened my mouth, but then shut it again, sighing as I shook my head. "Nothing. Look, I'm sorry for whatever I did that made you hate me. I know... I mean, most fanfictions list you as being the kind of mech who doesn't trust people a lot, but I wish I knew how to get you to realize you _can_ trust me! I'm not asking you to open up about your deepest darkest secrets, just know I'm not gonna do anything to hurt you!"

He eyed me warily. "How can I believe that? The 'Cons turned you over to us without a fuss."

"They also turned Sideswipe over." I frowned. I looked at my wrist, still showing a great deal of bruising. Ratchet said I should wait longer, because although connecting now wouldn't do any harm, it would be really painful, but if it helped... I held my wrist out to him, palm up. "I don't know if you can connect to me like this. It's night, I can transform if I need to."

"You should be recharging." There was something else in his optics now, as he stared at my wrist, undoubtedly noticing the bruising.

"I can't sleep. I haven't been able to sleep for days." I yawned, feeling heavy. I was tired. If I could relax enough, I'd be able to sleep without a hitch. I just had a hard time relaxing in the apartment.

He looked at me, his eyes lifting to my face and examining it very carefully. Then he growled, and the door popped open. I moved back, preparing for this hook up thing, but paused when he didn't climb out of the truck. He actually moved over.

"Climb in."

I was a little wary of him, but I knew better than to ignore an order from _Ironhide_ of all mechs. I climbed into the truck, wiping the sand off my feet before placing them on the surprisingly warm mat. The seat seemed to shift under me, the arm rest moving further away from my body, and the seat generally lengthening and widening.

Soon, I was laying curled on a large, padded surface, and holo-Hide was gone.

"Recharge femme. If you continue to have issues recharging, I will return to you Ratchet for medical analysis. Until then, rest. You are...safe."

I nodded a little. Even if he didn't trust me, I knew he was a mech of his word. Curling up on the warm surface below me, I sighed softly, and relaxed.

For an over-protective, trigger-happy mech, Ironhide could be surprisingly soothing and relaxing.

* * *

**Written** : Sept 8, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	48. Games

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Have I ever mentioned Ironhide makes nearly as comfortable a bed as Optimus? Oh, well, considering I've never slept with him before... Uh, that is, slept _in_ him... _

_Um, you know what? New topic. Why is it the bots seemed more comfortable to sleep in or on than an actual bed? Huh, not a new topic. Still... I remember fanfictions stating that the bots were often used as substitute beds for their human allies, because something about their presence was soothing. I never would have pegged that for being true._

_I mean, I always would have figured, sleeping inside a sentient _alien_ being, who was probably watching you as you slept, would be just a _little_ bit disturbing. _

_Oddly enough, it wasn't._

_Then again, I never in my wildest dreams imagined _becoming_ a Cybertronian, let alone meeting the actual Autobots and Decepticons, befriending them, having freakin' _Sunny _of all bots as a guardian, or actually talking to 'Cade and watching him leave the Decepticons..._

_Speaking of which, I hope he's okay._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**(Next Day, Bella's POV)**

I looked around at the other girls from where I lay, sprawled out across my towel on the sand. Mikeala was pulling her hair up, dressed in a tank top and shorts. Maggie wore much the same thing, her hair loose and blowing in the faint wind, with a small book in front of her face, but a look of blatant disinterest in it. Sarah and Judy appeared to be deep in discussion about children, and their troublesome habits...

"I'm just worried when she starts dating." Sarah admitted, rubbing sunscreen lotion on her arms. "I mean, what's the saying? With a boy, you only have to worry about one prick? With a girl, you have to worry about every prick?" Mikeala snorted, and I giggled. She cocked her head our way. "Oh, come on. You two can't deny it, either."

"No, you're right." Mikeala agreed with a snort. "You never know what your kid's gonna bring home." She raised an eyebrow then, glancing at Judy. "Like a new boyfriend with a hot robot alien car."

"Or the robot alien car, itself." Mrs. Witwicky commented back dryly. "I swear! The first time I ever saw that bot transform, I was certain I was going to have a heart attack!"

"Try my point of view! The very first bot I met tried to kill me, and the next one abducted me!"

"Yeah, but I'm sure there's worse ways to go than _Sam_ and _Bumblebee._" I raised an eyebrow at Mikeala, leaning against the edge of the porch, adjusting my towel before shaking off the excess sand.

She seemed to think about it a moment, before nodding, an almost impish grin forming across her features. "That's true. They're both cute and sweet, and one transforms into a _really_ gorgeous car! I could wash him all day long..." She sighed a little.

I snickered, shaking my head. "I wouldn't." All the girls gave me an odd look, and I cracked what I'm sure was a fairly evil smirk. "I washed Optimus and Sunstreaker-" Their eyes widened. "-and got them hooked on it."

"Wasn't that when Sunstreaker was covered with noodles?" Maggie tilted her head a little, eyes sparkling in amusement.

"Wait, Sunstreaker the Autobot, or Sunstreaker the _Ferrari_?" Sarah's jaw dropped. When Maggie clarified, her eyes widened in horror. "Who the freakin' hell's gonna pour noodles on a _Ferrari_? I'm no car-nut, but Jesus man, there are better ways to die!" She shuddered, shaking her head. "Wow, I think I'm actually feeling sympathy pains."

Laughing a little, I shook my own head. "Not as bad as Epps was, by the time Sunstreaker was done chasing him all over the base." The girls laughed, and we all relaxed, falling quiet a bit longer as we soaked up the sun.

It was a nice, quiet, warm day today. Sunny, but with a hint of wind. Just enough to keep it from being unpleasant out. This was definitely a thousand and one steps up from the base, and the environment there. Even with it's awkward moments, I was starting to prefer being here. We were all sprawled out, just taking a day to relax and fool around.

Well...all but Rika...

"Anyone seen Rika?" I frowned then, glancing around at the other girls. They all looked around, frowning as well.

"I heard something in her apartment earlier." Judy pointed in the direction. "I think she was up to something." She caught my look then and sighed. "She's always up to something, isn't she?"

I nodded.

"Oh no."

"Oh, _yes_!"

Rika's shout had us all jumping, I think. "Wow, talk about a sixth sense. All we do is mention her name, and she appears." I rolled my eyes to the sky. "Now if only Primus would see to give me a few million dollars..." I paused, waiting. When nothing happened, I shrugged and looked at the girls. "Meh, worth a try."

Rika plopped down next to me, right in the send, and held up some home made playing cards. "I was just having a _ball_ making up a new game for us." The others eyed her warily, but I leaned forward, suddenly intent. Rika was very creative, at times. She placed a bottle down on the porch, and directed us to sit in a circle around it.

The girls were reluctant to do so, but they did.

Then she spread a small amount of cards almost randomly in front of each of us, with that wicked smile stuck to her face. "Okay, the game's called 'Spin the Bottle: Deadly Questions'."

I hummed a little, raising an eyebrow. "Sounds interesting."

"Sounds scary." Maggie muttered with a shake of her head.

Judy and Sarah exchanged a more worried look, before raising an eyebrow. "Explain." They exchanged another look, and cracked up at the way they'd both spoken in sync, in the same tone and everything.

Rika grinned toothily, before pointing to the bottle. "Well, the first thing is we pick someone to go first. They spin the bottle, and whoever it lands on has to answer a question." She slapped Mikeala's hands away from her cards. "And no peeking at the questions before you ask one." She pointed to the cards then. "Each card contains what I like to call a 'Deadly Question'. Basically, it's a question you would never think to ask or answer in public, and some can be pretty personal, others are pretty innocent. Kind of like an adult version of Truth or Dare, but with our own personal twist." She shrugged then. "I thought it'd be a cool way to get to know each other a little more, and some of the questions will probably involve the Autobots in some way."

I nodded, smiling a little. "Wow, sounds good to me." I looked up at the girls.

"I don't know about the personal stuff." Sarah raised an eyebrow. "Especially since we can't look at the questions ahead of time, but the rest of it sounds...interesting." She nodded a little.

Judy also nodded. "I have nothing to hide, let's go for it!"

I grinned at her excitement, before turning to Mikeala and Maggie, who also agreed. Then we chose Rika to go first, since it was her game to begin with.

She spun the bottle, and we watched it twirl and twirl and twirl. It slowed, passing Maggie, Mikeala, me, Rika, and landed on Sarah. "Okay, Sarah." She grabbed a card and lifted it, smiling at whatever was written on it. "This should be a fairly easy one to answer. How did you and your husband/boyfriend first meet?"

"Hm, seems innocent enough." Sarah glanced over towards Ironhide, before looking back with a smile on her face. "I was at a party. My friend, Cecilia, knew a bunch of army guys, and was throwing a party for them. Kind of a 'Welcome Home' thing, since they were returning from being stationed overseas for a year."

I think we were all listening intently. I'd always wondered this myself. Every fanfiction I'd read already had them as a couple, with a family, but what was their past? Their history? A glance over to Ironhide showed me even _he_ was listening in.

"Well, some of the guys got pretty rowdy after a few drinks. This was a few years ago, mind you, I was having a few myself. I remember this one guy cornered me, and kept trying to get me to go upstairs with him. He wasn't bad looking." She grimaced then. "But he reeked of booze bad enough, I nearly tossed my margaritas all over his shoes."

"Oh nasty." Rika groaned.

Sarah laughed a little, her blue eyes glittering as she brushed her hair out of her face. "Well, Will showed up then. I guess he was one of the designated driver's or something, because he was totally sober. He pulled the guy off me, shouting orders at him, before turning to me. I remember thinking he was the most handsome man I'd ever seen, and the uniform definitely helped!" She giggled as a lot of us agreed, obviously being suckers for men in uniform.

"He came to your rescue?" Mikeala had a smile on her face.

Sarah nodded.

"Oh, wow. How romantic."

"Just wait, it gets better." Snorting a little, the blonde shook her head and took a sip of her bottle of water, before taking a deep breath. "Remember, I was drunk, too. I just looked into his eyes, grabbed him by the back of the head, kissed him, and told him to call me, before passing out." She cracked up laughing, her cheeks a deep cherry red.

Everyone else was exchanging looks of disbelief. We all kind of just waited for something else, but when we met her eyes, realized she was telling the truth, it was _our_ turn to crack up.

"Seriously?" I felt my jaw drop.

"Seriously." She shook her head again, slapping a hand over her face as she groaned. "And I didn't even tell him my name, or give him my number or anything! I was _so_ mortified the next day! I thought for sure he was going to hate me because of that." She laughed lightly, her fingers brushing over the wedding band she wore, as her gaze softened. "But he _did_ call me. Turns out, he was a little worried. Asked Cecilia for my name and number, before putting me to bed in one of the rooms upstairs, and pretty much guarding it to make sure no one else entered, until Cece sent everyone home."

"Like I said, how romantic." Mikeala had an 'awww' expression on her face. "Wow."

Sarah's smile looked glued to her face and she nodded again. "Imagine how I felt. I had a hangover the size of Optimus-" I snorted and Rika giggled. "-and he invited me out for coffee. We got to talking, one thing led to another, and...here we are."

"We need more men like WIll." Rika pouted. "That was so gentlemanly. Wow."

"I know, but you can't have him." Reaching out for the bottle, Sarah stuck her tongue out at Rika, wiggling her fingers pointedly. "He's _all_ mine!" With a laugh, she spun the bottle, which landed on Maggie. Picking up a card, she raised an eyebrow. "Okay, this one's not so bad either. What's the oddest thing you've ever experienced?"

Judy snorted into her own bottle of water. "All things considered, I think that's pretty obvious."

"You might be surprised." Maggie raised an eyebrow back, grinning mischeviously. "I'd have to say that was...two years ago. I was hanging out with Glenn, and ended up spending the night because of how late it was by the time we finished our homework for college. Before we turned in, I thought we'd play a quick game of Truth or Dare, just for hoots. Didn't think he'd go for it, but..."

I raised an eyebrow, trying to imagine Glenn playing Truth or Dare. I couldn't see it, but then again, there was a lot I couldn't 'see' that was actually happening. Like Dead End going neutral. Or Blackout for that matter.

"Well, it was my turn, and he picked dare, so I dared him to dress in his grandmother's clothes."

My jaw dropped. I was suddenly envisioniing Glenn in a white, curly wig, with a pink, flower printed long skit, and a white blouse, complete with stuffed bra, cane, and horn-rimmed glasses. "Oh Primus, that's a bad mental image!" I shuddered, as the girls cracked up, all shuddering or shaking their heads.

"Glenn in his grandmother's 'booty jeans' and a tank top, is _not_ good for the imagination." Maggie snorted on her laugh, choking.

I blinked, accosted with a mental image of Glenn in said clothing, and shuddered so heavily that my hidden armored plates actually clanked together a little, causing the girls to laugh at me. "Primus! That's almost as bad as Optimus in a thong!_ Almost_!" I paused then, seeing the girls with varying mortified expressions, and groaned, explaining really quickly.

"Is he gonna keep appearing in bus-mode?"

I shrugged. "He's blissfully unaware of the naughty thoughts of those old hens, so yeah... Probably."

"Boss bot'd do it, too. Jus' ta please them."

We all turned to the voices, finding ourselves surprised to see a set of young teens staring at us with smirks. One had bright green, touseled hair over even brighter blue eyes, and the other had red hair. They both looked to be only about sixteen or so, just a tad younger than Bumblebee himself.

"I thought the same thing." I rolled my eyes as Ironhide's holo walked up behind them, before growling, and in one quick move, knocking their heads hard enough together for both to collapse with a yelp, and us to cringe at the sickening crack they made when they connected.

"Geez! Don't kill them!" I watched as the twins lay on the ground, holding their heads. "They're just kids!"

"Hey! I's resent that!"

"No, you's resemble that, dumbaft!"

"We's _twins_, moron!" Green-haired Skids slapped at his brother, earning a slap back, and after a moment, they were bitch slapping at each other from the ground.

I rolled my eyes again, recognizing their voices, accents, and tones immediately as they glared at each other. "Behave, or you're not staying!" I warned loudly. "And I'll give Ironhide permission to literally kick your afts back to your alt modes!" I blinked, startled, when Ironhide smirked briefly at me, before glaring down at the twins.

"Aww! We's jus wanted ta play!"

"This is a girls only game, boys. Sorry. You can watch, but unless you want to answer rather feminine questions..." Rika trailed off with a giggle as they exchanged grimaces before fading out of sight. "And you, Hardarse?"

"My name is not 'Hardarse'."

She raised an eyebrow, shrugging off his warning tone. "Ironhide, Hardarse, same difference." At his confused look, several of the girls broke out laughing, before Rika shook her head. "Okay then, Maggs, time to spin."

"Maggs?"

I shook my head slightly at the young Australian. "Don't bother. She nicknames everyone, and there's no getting out of it."

Looking at me a long moment, Maggie sighed and her head dropped, before she picked it back up. She spun the bottle, which landed on me, and drew a card. Abruptly, her eyes got round, and her face turned a rather interesting shade of red.

"What?"

"Um, can we do second picks?"

"Nope." Rika popped the 'p' in there, with a rather nasty grin.

"Oh lord... Okay then.. Um... Bella..." If the way she was hesitating was any clue, something told me I didn't want to hear the question. "Whatbotwouldyoudo?"

I blinked. Then I frowned. I glance to Rika, who looked like she was trying not to laugh. Then I looked to Mikeala, whose eyes were also wide, to Sarah and Judy, who looked lost.

"What would she be 'doing' to said bot?" Ironhide's eyes narrowed. Abruptly, he hissed and stiffened, glaring over his shoulder at the two Chevies that were now shaking with howling laughter. "That isn't even physically possible, you glitching slaggers!"

"It would be, if you made a minor adjustment to your holographic forms." Rika muttered saucily, before taking a long, leisurely swig of her water.

Ironhide spun back, giving her an odd look, before his holographic form fizzled out of existence, and we all busted up laughing again.

Leaning in, I grinned as Rika took another sip and mock whispered in her ear. "Meet Ironhide, the closet virgin." Then I had to lean back as she quickly leaned away from everyone, spraying her water in an arch exactly where Hide _had_ been standing. "Wow. Guess he's psychic, too."

Maggie hiccupped a little, before nudging me slightly. "You still gotta answer the question."

"You mean I gotta _choose_?" I whined a little. "Most of the Autobots are hot as hell, and there's even a Decepticon or two I'd bone, if they weren't so damn evil."

"Bone?" Mikeala made a face.

"Yeah, interesting story behind that term, and it involves you in a fanfiction." I grinned toothily at her, causing her to lean back with an odd look, before snickering a little.

"Wait, a Decepticon?" Rika frowned. "Aren't they all creepy and ugly?"

"Not 'Cade. He's not bad looking. The teeth put me off. I mean, _ow_. Talk about leaving your mark_s,_ but he's not bad looking. Still, I'm pro-Autobot, anyday." I shrugged, musing quietly. He didn't interest me in that way, really, but I don't think it would have taken a whole lot to sway me to be his mate. Well, if I hadn't met certain other mechs, first.

"Well, if ya had to choose..."

"If I _had_ to choose..." The sound of powerful sports engines approaching caught my attention, and I glanced over. I startled, feeling my heart pick up it's pace, as twin red and yellow Ferraris drove over, just as the Chevy twins and Ironhide took off.

It was nice to see Sideswipe looking brand new in his form. He was stunning. Equally as breath taking as his brother, and equally as powerful. Apparently, the bots were amazed at the quick, complex work Ratchet must have done. Most of Sideswipe's more severe injuries had been tended to, and his lesser severe injuries were healing on their own. His face had been remodeled to I guess whatever he was supposed to look like.

I'd overheard Ironhide mumbling about how he'd forever have faint scars on his cheek plating. Something they'd apparently have in common, except Sideswipe's ran up and over and around his newly replaced optic. I'd never met him face to face in his new armored form, though, and I was admittedly confused as to why they were here. Confused and worried. I'd left them at the base for a reason.

But if Ironhide and the twins were taking off, there couldn't have been anything to worry about... Right?

Shaking off my worries, I took a deep breath, mentally steeling myself, and turned back to the girls. "It's a tie, between those two." I jerked a thumb in the direction of where the Ferraris carelessly pulled to a stop in the middle of the parking lot, the passenger door popping open on the red one and a little toy truck dropping out. "Wheelie?" _Oh wow, I never even thought about him!_ Immediately, I was filled with guilt. With everything that had been going on, and all the ruckus on the base, I'd totally forgotten about him.

I guess my only consolation was knowing Optimus wouldn't cruelly offline a bot without a good reason.

"Hiya toots." His voice came from his truck mode, as he took a wheelchair ramp up to the sidewalk, before slowly making his way through the sand to my side. "How ya doin?"

"Hey there." I picked him up and placed him in my lap. He was heavy, but not uncomfortably so. I felt a little odd. He was _Mikeala's_ pet, or guardian, or whatever, in the movie, and he seemed to be more mine now. Still, if I had things my way, the second movie wouldn't happen, and Mikeala wouldn't _need_ a guardian. "What're you doing here?"

"Boss bot said he was lookin' for volunteers to come watch ya, princess." The little bot almost carefully rolled off my lap, before transforming and climbing back on. I was a little put out by his bold confidence, but held him nonetheless. After all, I was fairly certain he was a pretty young little mech. Maybe even younger than Skids and Mudflap, and if the movies were right, this would be a more rare occasion. "So we volunteered."

"We can 'bond' just as well here, as anywhere else." Sunstreaker's voice caught me off guard, and I jumped a little, tightening my hold on Wheelie ever so slightly as I glanced up at the twin holoforms.

I frowned, seeing the strawberry blonde head of Sideswipe. His face was still pretty swollen and red, scarred up the one side though I had to look hard to see the scars, his one eye still more or less useless, and he limped as he walked. They made their holographic forms as close a proximation to what they'd look like if they were human as possible, which included transferring their injuries.

He still wasn't a bad looking human, though. Somehow, I could tell, when he healed he'd still be beautiful, even with the scars.

"Did you hear me?"

I tore my eyes from Sideswipe, to stare at Sunstreaker. "I was trying not to." My frown deepened as he almost glared at me. "I thought _you_ of all bots would've been glad to get rid of me. I was _trying_ to give you guys a chance to relax."

"And give yourself another chance to get into trouble. Last time I left you unguarded, you got captured. I'm not taking that risk again."

"I think, what my brother means is, we volunteered." Sideswipe rolled his visible eye at me good-naturedly. He eyed me a moment then. "I heard the femme was born human. This is what you looked like before you transformed?"

I nodded a little. "_You_ should be relaxing."

He shrugged, and hissed, wincing as he rubbed at his arm a little. "I'm good, as long as things stay 'Con free." Then he frowned, limping his way over to me. He grabbed the piece of porch next to me, leaning against me, and I felt my eyes widen.

"I think your holographic body temperature's a little off." I leaned away a little, the burning hot temperature immediately bringing my own up. Cybertronians apparently didn't 'sweat' like humans, but we could get uncomfortably hot. "Cool it down by a few degrees."

He cursed a little, sagging against the wall, and Sunstreaker was on his other side in an instant, gripping his arm tightly. "My internal calibrations are off. Many of my systems are still fairly damaged, it'll take some time to repair them."

I nodded. "Are you sure it's okay to be away from the base?" I gave Sunstreaker a dark glare when Sideswipe wasn't looking, only to have the look returned.

"I would know better than you what my own _twin_ is strong enough for." He snapped darkly. "He merely needs practice in using his holographic form, and to take it easy. Not a..." His eyes dimmed oddly a moment, before he refocused. "Mother hen."

"Then maybe you shouldn't have come around!" I snapped right back, a new tension rising in my chest. "Because unlike _some_ mechs, I actually _care_ about others!" I standing up, I shifted my hold on Wheelie as I took him inside, slamming the door behind me.

What was it about that damn bot, that was so slagging infuriating, sometimes?

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Out of sight doesn't apparently always mean out of mind. When I stomped into the house, the girls all took it to mean a perfect time to go their own 'apartments', or out somewhere, but unfortunately, either the twins themselves didn't get the message, or they just didn't care._

_Sideswipe was the first to follow me, apologizing for his brother, and I didn't miss the loud 'BAM!' of metal on metal. Looks like he took a page out of the Chevy twins' book and smacked 'Streaker with his door. On the upside, I didn't hear a squeal. On the downside, I _did_ have to hear the bitching about chipped paint._

_Sunstreaker came in later, acting like nothing had happened. We all sort of just...existed. They looked around my apartment with surprising fascination, immediately finding the Transformers DVD covers that had been returned at...well...some point, and my merchandise._

_Sideswipe got a kick out of my 'Robots in Disguise' shirt. Sunstreaker got a kick out of my 'Scaring the stripes off Bumblebee' one, even mentioning the possibility of repainting Bumblebee like a normal yellow Camaro at some point, to resemble the picture more._

_Wasn't funny though, and I didn't hesitate to tell him so. Which got me a whole new round of bitching about how I 'supposedly' knew all kinds of pranks, but never pulled them. Was he calling me a coward? It took a long, _dark_ look from both myself _and_ Sideswipe for him to realize what he'd said._

_And he actually apologized!_

_Wow._

_I mean...wow!_

_Wheelie was quiet as I cooked for the sake of cooking, old habits die hard, and cleaned up around the house. The twins watched tv, discussing random things. It was when I went to check my email that I got a startling shock._

_Maybe, I wasn't as cut off from my dimension as I thought._

_- Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : Sept 9, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	49. Surprise!

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : WARNING! Possible spoilers for TF3! And do I have to really say it? I don't own Youtube.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_At least _these_ twins knew how to get along. I could more or less do my thing and forget they were there, except that every time I turned to look through the living room, the first thing I noticed were the bright, flashy Ferraries outside. Their presence was both a comfort and a source of tension. I just didn't feel right with them both here, for some reason. The next was the two startlingly good looking young men sitting sprawled out on my couch, staring almost blankly at the television._

_They were watching Family Guy, and I just _knew_ they had to be having an internal chat about it. Especially when Stewie drank his soda, and Sideswipe tilted his head towards Sunstreaker, who smirked faintly._

_It was...one of those really touching scenes. Sides was sitting leaned against Sunstreaker, his head on his brother's shoulder, and Sunstreaker sat straight up, staring ahead like he didn't have a care in the world. But...maybe it was my time around him or something, but there was a slightly softer look about his face._

_Then Stewie began running around, acting like a nut, which caught my attention, and I turned to the television, raising an eyebrow with a smirk._

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

"Prowl on high grade."

Sideswipe spluttered in startled laughter, almost jerking out of the odd, stiff trance he'd been in, and groaned in pain as he held his sides. Immediately, Sunstreaker put an arm around him, pulling him closer, looking at him with a combination of worry and amusement. It was sweet, and almost kind of intimate, but I didn't think much of it. Sideswipe was in pain. Sunstreaker wanted to comfort it.

My amusement faded at the reminder that Sideswipe was hurt, however, and I felt my smirk fade. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean..." I trailed off when Sunstreaker shot me a warning look. _Right. Don't baby the Autobot warrior. _Shaking my head, I took a deep breath. "I'm just...gonna go." I turned and walked into my bedroom, closing the door behind Wheelie, and flipping on my computer.

The good old fans kicked in, and I smiled over at the sound, oddly enough missing it. _It's nice to see some things haven't changed._ I mused silently as I logged on to the network. Looking down, I picked Wheelie up and placed him on the bed. His size was handy for lifting, but I couldn't imagine he was pleased to be hefted anywhere. It almost seemed second nature to me. That was weird because I barely even knew the bot, but I knew he was too proud to be caught in someone's arms or on their lap too often. "How's everything with the Autobots?"

"Ironhide wants to use me as target practice, and Sunny wants to help him."

I looked at the door a moment, but when Sunstreaker didn't burst in here spewing flames because of Wheelie's casual use of his nickname, I grinned at Wheelie and winked, placing a finger at my lips a moment. "Well, what Sunny doesn't know won't hurt us, now will it?"

"Eh..." The little former 'Con shrugged a little, before grinning. "Sides is cool, I guess. So's boss bot." There was a flash in his optics. "If people keep treatin' ya like slag, why do ya keep goin' back?"

"They weren't. Not really. It was the humans who gave me a hard time." I sighed as I turned to my computer, opening my email page. "Huh." I frowned as I noticed a subscription update for a youtube channel that...quite frankly? It shouldn't have existed in the first place. Not in _this _dimension, anyways. For a moment, I could only just stare. I mean, I'd come to expect a lot, since coming here, and knew there were really no limitations where ever the Primes were concerned, but _this_?

"What's wrong?"

"Well, not _wrong_, really... It's just..." I shook my head, clicking on the link. Youtube opened up and the video began playing. I put on my headphones; the apartments were cheap with little privacy so I used my headphones for watching videos online or listening to music. I waited a moment, before feeling my eyes widen.

"Bella?"

I watched the video, my eyes almost _glued_ to the screen. It was a Transformers 3 update, including rumored characters, both good and bad, and the news that Mikeala... Or rather, Megaon Fox had been fired, and something was going to happen with Mikeala's character.

_Oh, no..._ I remembered it all being a warning, but to actually have it confirmed? I pulled the headphones off, feeling a sense of dread. It was rumored not to happen for more than two years, but still... "Wheelie, I need to talk to the bots, preferably Optimus." I pulled the headset off, even as I turned. I picked him up and put him in my lap, before freeze framing several shots for him. "See the Mercedes? The red Ferrari? The silver helicopter? Can you take pictures of them, for me?"

He nodded, and I guess he did so, because only a second after I paused each picture, he told me to keep going. "So, Sides is the red Ferrari, who're the other two?"

"No, Wheelie, he's not." I looked down at him. "I don't know why he's that form or color now, but he _should_ be a silver Corvette." I zoomed the video ahead to a clip of multiple cars, including a silver Corvette Convertible. "See?"

"Huh, then who're they?"

"That's what I want to know. They're rumoring the Mercedes is gonna be 'Einstein bot' and there's only one bot I can think of they'd refer to as that. Wheeljack. As for the Ferrari, there are rumors of Hot Rod or Sunstreaker. It's not Sunny, he's already here, and I hope to hell it's not Hot Rod."

"Why? Ain't he an Autobot?"

"Yeah, but he's also the one who takes Optimus' place, when he's ki-uh, offlined, becoming a new Prime." Which just personally didn't sit well with me. To me, there was only one Prime. Then again, that was _me_. My chest tightened a little as I ran back to another part. _So much for Earth welcoming the bots._ I stared at the Autobot image in a circle with a line through it. _So they'll be outcasts for bringing their war here? It makes sense, but that seems so...cold._

"What's that?"

I jumped at Wheelie's voice and looked down at where he was pointing, only to see the clock on my computer acting funny. It wasn't holding time or ticking forward like it should be. Rather, it was counting _down_ and doing so alarmingly quickly. Then it started to count up again, before going back down. In fact, it wasn't just the time, but the date kept shifting as well.

I didn't give it much thought. "Sunstreaker? Can you come here, please? I need your help with something!" I called over my shoulder. I would have called Sideswipe, but didn't want him moving more than necessary. Then again, he'd probably follow Sunny anyways.

There was a sound of a heavy sigh a moment later, and my door opened. "What?" The tone was harsh, but for once, I chose to ignore it.

"Clocks aren't supposed to do that. Especially not computer clocks." I pointed to the odd action in the corner. "I'm probably being a little paranoid, but there's no chance Decepticons like...planted a bomb or anything, right?" I glanced up at him, feeling fear coursing through me. I carefully shifted my hold on Wheelie, before standing, holding him in my arms. He was surprisingly small, compared to the movie, and I was honestly surprised at the lack of pervertedness. Then again, I'm not Mikeala.

Sunstreaker leaned forward, narrowing his eyes at the screen. I took a moment to admire his profile, his lithe form, and beautiful, sharp features, before shaking my head as my cheeks heated. "Hm, my sensors are detecting something. I'm not certain what. It might be best to leave though, until we're able to identify the odd behaviour." He glanced up at the frozen image of the Autobot insignia and his eyes narrowed to a dark glare as he slowly turned to look at me.

I knew that look and actually _growled_. "Don't you dare start on me! I didn't put that there, or go looking for it! I got an email and opened it, and..." I felt the anger melt out of me. "I don't know how or why, but I think it came from my dimension. I think it was updates for the next movie."

He blinked, some of the harshness melting out of his features. "What does the next movie have to do with our insignia brazenly stamped in public places, with the circle and line?"

Swallowing, I shook my head. "Nothing good. In the second movie, the Fallen makes a public demand for Sam. Because of his knowledge, Sam is the key to either destroying our world, or saving it, and the Decepticons access our broadcasting facilities to make sure everyone possible knows about the Autobots and Sam. Apparently...that's not a good thing, and I'm guessing a large faction of humans don't want the Autobots here." I gestured to the image. "Thus, picture. It's supposed to be an 'Autobots Go Home' theme, I think."

"Lets go. We'll find somewhere else to stay, if you refuse to return to the base, but we're not staying here. I've already sent word about the odd happenings, and informed Ironhide to return for the rest of the femmes."

"Wait, we're not just gonna leave them."

"The 'Cons aren't after _them_ right now." He looked at me, glancing down at the small bot in my arms. "We can leave Wheelie-"

"I'm not just _leaving_ them! What if it _is_ a bomb?"

He paused. "Then it would likely have been set to a motion detector or set up to blow the moment you turned your computer on. Decepticons wouldn't allow for the errors a timer would provide."

"That doesn't explain why my computer is acting like this!"

"I'm not a slagging scientist! What is it with you, femme? First you demand me to tell you why Primus chose to change you, and now this?"

"I'm not demanding anything of you!" I put Wheelie down and let him roll out of the room, muttering, before folding my arms over my chest. "Except maybe a little civility! I'm just saying, if it's not a bomb, there's no reason for my computer to be acting this oddly!"

He narrowed his eyes and stalked up to me. I'm not sure if I'd ever really noticed how tall he was before, but as he stepped right up to me, I became immediately aware of tilting my head back to keep my eyes locked on his. I could feel his chest rising and falling with his holographic breaths, he was so close, and he looked about ready to rip into me. However, the anger melted out of me, and I felt an odd longing hit me. With as close as he was, I could see the flawlessness in his face, just how sharp the angles of his cheek bones and chin were, and just how fierce and _blue_ his eyes were. My mouth worked quietly; I was suddenly hit with the urge to...well...kiss those lips. To see if they were as soft as they looked, to see how he'd react, when a cry from the other room caught my attention.

"Oh, _yes_!"

That...was not Rika.

That was also a sound I hoped to never hear in my apartment, and I was going to quite literally skin whoever unblocked that channel. Before Sunstreaker could do more than make an odd face, I was nearly dashing out of the room, grabbing Wheelie on the way to keep from tripping over his suddenly still form, only to stare in horror at Sideswipe.

His eyes were wide, and his jaw hanging open. I don't think I looked a whole lot different, except my expression was probably a great deal more horrified. The funniest aspect, I _had_ to notice, was the way his head was tilted to an odd angle.

"Harder! Faster!"

"Oh baby, just like that..."

Feeling a presence at my back, I turned around and with a groan, buried my face in the warm, hard chest. _Primus, kill me now!_ If everything else wasn't bad enough, dealing with _this_ would probably be enough to put Optimus in an early grave. I felt the hands on my arms, gripping tightly, but not tightly enough to hurt, and shuddered at a low moan from the television.

"Slag, what're they-Oh..." Sideswipe's intrigued and disturbed voice caught my ears. "Oh! _Oh_! Oh, eww! Wait, they actually... And your species does this a lot? _This_ is how you procreate? Doesn't that _hurt_?"

"Oh baby!"

"Yes, I'm gonna-"

"Turn it off!" I tore myself away from Sunstreaker's chest, shoving Wheelie into his arms, desperately trying to ignore the look of intrigue on his face as I sprinted over to Sideswipe and snatched the remote from him, turning the television off, and popping the batteries out, before dumping the remote in the garbage. Then I went and dug around behind the television, and unplugged it. Once I was done, I sighed and collapsed on the ground. _You hate me, don't you?_ I rolled my eyes to the sky with a glare, before burying my face in my hands.

"Should that really go in there?"

I froze at Sunstreaker's curious question.

"I don't know. Doesn't seem very sanitary, or safe. Doesn't that hurt, though? I mean, human females are created to accept the parts, but-"

_"Enough!" _I jumped to my feet. "Humans don't like to publicly talk about mating, or...things like _that_!" I almost yelped, pointing at the television. "Besides, wasn't there this whole bomb scare thing? We were all gonna leave..." I looked pointedly to Sunstreaker.

"You refuse to leave without the others, and I refuse to carry Earth organics within me." He shrugged a little.

"We'll wait outside, then!" I hissed, grabbing my purse and keys, before rethinking the keys. _Every time I come here, _something_ goes wrong. Frag it!_ Dropping them on the table, I bent down and picked Wheelie up from where Sunstreaker had evidently dropped him.

"Hey! I can walk, femme!"

"Not fast enough!" I spat out, pausing when Sunstreaker smirked and Sideswipe laughed. "What? Are we going or not?" I turned and ran out of the house, heading next door, I paused outside it as my cell phone made an odd beeping noise. I put Wheelie down and pulled it out, frowning at the screen, where the image kept flickering back and forth. _It's...not my computer._ I glanced up and over to the Ferraris. "It's not the computer..." Suddenly, I was pounding on the door, before running to the Ferraris. Sideswipe's door flipped open as I let Wheelie down, but I stopped just short of hopping in. "It's not-"

"We just got the call! Three incoming meteors, heading right over us! Get the others!"

I spun to where Rika was opening her door, worried eyes peering out. "We gotta go! _Now_!"

She turned and yelled into the apartment, and I raised my eyebrow as Maggie and Mikeala dashed out with their purses, before Rika ran next door. She pounded on it, and seconds later Sarah and Judy were joining us. With a groan, I realized seats would be a little tight, and patted Sideswipe's hood a little. "I hope you can handle all the femmes." I told him regretfully, running my hand gently over the paint.

He hissed, before I slipped my fingers into the seam along the doorframe, and he shivered a little, a slightly electrical tingle running through my fingers. There was a small groan, and I couldn't tell if it was in pain or not. "Please, don't do that. Not right now." He almost whimpered the words. The sound of his voice was intriguing, it didn't sound so much like pain, but I didn't give myself time to dwell on that.

I recoiled like I'd been burned. "Sorry. Look, if you can take the femmes-" I've been spending too much time around the bots, apparently. "I'll wash and wax you later."

He made a small keening noise. "Not cold water! Please!"

With a small nervous laugh, I stepped to the side as Rika, Mikeala and Maggie dashed into the car, slipping into the tiny back seat, before Judy and Sarah, by some unspoken word, crowded into the front. _So much for only taking three..._ I really hoped he could handle five people inside him.

They all seemed remarkably careful as they slipped in, however, trying not to kick at any thing, or kneel awkwardly on anything... I gave Sides a single stroke along his hood, staring at my hand as it drifted over the red paint. The way it felt seemed...right. "Warm water, I promise." I spoke it quietly, but knew he could hear me.

Then I turned, hearing a high pitched whistling as I dashed for Sunstreaker. I grabbed Wheelie on my way. He had the door open before I got there, and I dashed in, dumping the little RC truck in the back seat, turning awkwardly to click my feet together to knock loose sand off, as if by instinct, before pulling my legs inside. Before I was even straightened, the seatbelt slid around me, pulling me snugly to the seat, and we were squealing out of there with Sideswipe in the lead, looking a little unstable.

"Is he okay?"

"He's got five humans inside him. What do you think?"

"_He_ only has five humans inside him because _you_ refuse to take any, leaving _him_ the only one left to take them. At least _he_ takes the whole guardian thing seriously."

"Slaggit, femme! If I didn't take the guardian thing seriously, you wouldn't be here!"

_I'm starting to wonder if what wouldn't be better. _"Really? Well your definition and mine of 'guardian' must differ then, because I'm referring to humans in general." I glared at the dash, before looking up. Then an idea hit me. "Well frag! I can transform and take some, too!" I glanced back to see Wheelie sitting still on the floor in his truck mode, and hoped he was okay.

"You can't drive."

I paused, before slapping the dash hard enough that it actually hurt my hand. "_I'm_ trying to be helpful, Sunstreaker!"

There was a low growl, before the sound of heavy venting. The ride was silent as we followed Sideswipe, soon joined by Ironhide, the Chevy twins, and Jazz. We stopped briefly enough for the girls -_all_ the girls, surprisingly- to clamour out of Sideswipe and into the other vehicles. Sarah headed for Ironhide, followed by Judy. Rika headed for Jazz, and after a second's hesitation, Mikeala joined her. Maggie headed for Skids, much to my surprise.

I would have joined them, eyeing Mudflap as the only free vehicle left, except when I tried to move, the seatbelt tightened and Sunstreaker growled.

"I thought you didn't want anyone in you."

"I don't want a squishy in me. I don't want _them_ in me." He almost snarled as we pulled back on the road, this time with Ironhide in the lead and Sideswipe just in front of us.

I stared at the dash. "God, Sunstreaker, I don't know what to make of you! Half the time you act like I'm the most pathetic thing you've ever met! The other half, you actually act like you care! _Pick one_!"

The car was again silent as they drove along the empty highway. It only just hit me just_ how _empty the highway was, and then Ironhide turned off it. The Ferrari began to rumble and shake, and I could make out Ironhide and Sideswipe jittering along the road, the poor red Ferrari having a harder time. He had to pull over, and we joined him, but the others continued on. I made out Sarah's worried expression in the rearview mirror but waved her off easily, running my hand along the steering wheel a little.

"Sunstreaker..."

"He's fine. He's just having a hard time with his stabilizers."

"Sunny..."

"I..." There seemed to be a hesitation, and his holographic form formed next to me. "You humans have many...excessive expressions and actions for so many different reasons. I find most of them useless, but some... What we saw on your television, that is how humans procreate?"

I felt myself heating in horror. "I... That... That channel was _supposed _to be blocked!" I sank down in the seat, watching as Sideswipe idled before us. The ground began to shake worse, and I glanced up, noting three brightly glowing orbs heading towards us, but not really _at us_. They were angled to go well overhead.

"Was _that_ what that was?"

I paused, glancing over at Sunstreaker.

"Sideswipe said the channel was blurry and when he scanned it, found it jammed. He hacked into the system to remove the jamming-"

My eyes widened even more. "That was jammed for a reason! I wanted it jammed!" Slapping my hands over my face, I groaned. "Oh my God, could this _get_ any worse?"

"I find the actions disgusting, because of the useless swap of most bodily fluids such as spit and sweat. It's absolutely messy and disgusting, and the majority of it has nothing to do with breeding."

Evidently, it could.

_Oh God no!_ _Tell me we're not having a 'birds and bees' discussion!_

"I suppose that is how your species expresses their love, though. Semen-"

That damn steering wheel was about to become embedded in my forehead if he kept up. It was looking better and better, and sweet, blissful death was sounding prettier and prettier every second he rambled cluelessly.

"-is necessary for your species to conceive, I understand, although I'm certain that when ingested through the mouth-"

_Primus, if you have any sympathy, you'll kill me now! Pretty please? Pretty please, with strawberries and whipped cream on top? Maybe energon sprinkles?_

"-and it has to travel through your digestion system. With your stomach acids, they will eradicate all hint of the-"

I'm not sure what my expression held. I'm pretty sure it was equal parts annoyance, pleading, horror, humiliation, and probably a good deal of _pleading_. Either way, as soon as he locked eyes on me, he fell silent, staring at me thoughtfully. I think I got a little lost in those eyes that almost seemed to glow without glowing, because the next thing I know, he's leaning forward. Before I can assess what he's gonna do, I feel warm, soft lips pressed against my own.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_It was everything I imagined and more. His lips were soft, warm, inviting. A complete opposite from his usual personality. The force and passion behind the brief kiss, however... That was all the Sunstreaker everyone knew. Aggressive and firm, demanding and failing to yield in any way. His mouth didn't mold to mine. In fact, he forced my lips to fold around his own, harshly pushing his tongue into my mouth._

_It was a little clumsy, though. Once I got over my initial shock, I was hard pressed to kiss him back. Funny how pulling away never crossed my mind. He'd obviously never done it before, being an alien robot, and I... I'd just never done it before. Either he pressed too hard, or moved too fast._

_But when he settled down, he pressed into the kiss, and I could feel his holographic hands coming up to my cheeks, pulling me to him harder. I think he made an odd sound, I couldn't identify, but my mind was actually otherwise occupied. The longer the kiss lasted, the more intense it seemed to get, and the more aggressive Sunstreaker seemed to get._

_Then he pulled back. He stiffened, and it suddenly hit me there was a roaring sound that actually really _hurt_! I curled up, covering my ears, and trying to gather my thoughts, and everything shook violently. Then there were multiple crashes, the ground shook impossibly harder, and I was thrown violently against the seat._

_My head actually _did_ bash into the steering wheel, dazing me, and I mentally cursed the ancient Primes._

_Someone had a really bad sense of humor!_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**Written** : Sept 9, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	50. New Arrivals and Old Injuries

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Sorry about the lacking updates, guys. Been busy with a stubborn cold, internet issues, appointments all over the place, and basically real life. Lots to come though.

Oh, and for anyone who asked, yes she got a Youtube update, more from her reality.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

"So you're not gonna kill me. Maybe the kid was right, but I sure as hell don't trust you. Where's the Camaro? Or the kid for that matter? You ditched them pretty fast, for so called _friends_." Reggie Simmons folded his arms over his chest, glaring up at the bots surrounding him with annorance and a hint of fear. "I don't trust the lot of you! This is probably some invasion gone bad! Like Body Snatchers or something! You NBEs-"

"Enough! Slagging human never stops talking!" Dead End snarled, glowering down at the human before him. "And you got the wrong bots, fleshbag! We're the Decepticons. The _bad_ guys!"

As if 'Decepticon' was the magic word, Simmons' eyes went wide, and he began to splutter. He stepped back nervously, but a higher pitched chattering behind him reminded him of the smaller bot's revival.

Barricade shot Dead End a look, before clipping him on the back of the head. Then he turned his attention to the human before them. "Not anymore. Look human, you've been spying on our kind."

"I was fired! I got no reason to spy on your pathetic asses anymore!"

"We're _robotic_ beings." Barricade rolled his optics as he spoke, annoyed and a little wry. "We can hack anything faster than it takes you to empty your bowels at the sight of us. We _know_ you've been tracking our kind, and we're here to give you a chance to put that to good use." His processor flashed over the image of this human's face in Bella's memory banks. "You've heard of the new femme. She knows of you as well."

"Wait, wait, wait! Okay, so I've been _watching_ you. I know about some new girl robot, but what..." Simmons shook his head, eyeing the bots nervously.

"The femme seems to believe you will join the right side, fighting for the freedom of your pathetic race." Barricade snarled as he crouched down. "I am giving you the chance to fulfill that role and reclaim your position in power."

"Sector-7 was disbanded!"

"_Not_ in Sector-7." Blackout growled, optics flashing. "NEST. Non-Biological Extraterrestrial Species Treaty. A group of humans and Cybertronians working together to keep your planet safe. They fight against the Decepticons threatening your planet." The fact that the team might not have had a name yet, never once crossed his memory banks.

"You guys." Simmons frowned. "You want me to join some human and robotic team to fight your own faction?"

"We've pulled ourselves from the war." Dead End crouched down as well, bringing his face close to the human. "We are no longer Decepticons, but a neutral faction only wishing peace."

Simmons kept frowning. Part of him couldn't help but believe them. The Decepticons he'd met were more worried about killing him than talking to him, and the other robots had been more concerned with just talking to him. He'd originally suspected all of their kind of being more or less evil, but he'd heard _all_ about the 'Autobots' who'd fought to protect the humans. He'd heard story after story about them, so part of him was a little more willing to hear their words. Especially since they'd taken back his 'trophy', revived the robot he'd taken it from, and even _that_ bot wasn't trying to kill him.

"This female thinks I'll be helpful?" Rumors in the private chat lines he'd managed to hack spoke of a girl who had information about the future. A human girl from what was guessed to be a parallel universe, who turned Cybertronian after being somehow dragged to this universe. It seemed ludicrous, but then again, so did 'aliens' in general, before he'd joined the government agency. "Look, guys, I'm bored with working in a butcher shop. I didn't spend years honing my talents, only to use them on how to precisely cut a slice of shank steak so it came out perfect."

"Nor to use them on doing your own laundry, it seems." Dead End snickered, and Barricade smirked. "Did you ever get your underwear cleaned, 'Reggie'?"

He spluttered as the Decepticons chuckled deeply, before glowering at them darkly. "L-Look..." His face darkened into a redder tinge, but he refused to acknowledge it. "Do you want my help or not?"

Barricade regarded him a moment, raising an optic ridge. "Us? Not. But I believe you'll be a valuable asset to the Autobots, with the knowledge you've managed to gather. In that sense, you may serve your country and your planet well in joining them."

"_If_ they will even let me."

"Oh trust me, if the femme has spoken to them, they'll let you."

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

I barely had a chance to shake off my shock, before we were off again. Sideswipe seemed just as unsteady as before, and Sunstreaker was really tense. His holographic form disappeared after a second, and he didn't speak a word as they sped through the desert. My mind kept looping over the tingling feeling in my lips, and the heat and pressure in my chest. I couldn't help but absently reach up, brushing my fingers over my lips.

I couldn't even form a coherent word, before the door was flying open, even as the car skidded to a stop, and even then, I had to grab my purse and Wheelie, and leap out before he threw me, and duck to the side before he transformed and stepped on me.

"Watch the squishy!" I yelped, ducking between his feet. Then I cried out as a hand scooped me up, only to glare half-heartedly at Sideswipe. Even in this form, he looked a lot more like the Sides I remembered, an endless relief to me. "You could have warned me!" I muttered, as he stared at me oddly. I looked back at him, kneeling in his hand, and brushed my hair out of my face. "What?"

He blinked, and shook his head. "Look." He gestured with his head.

I turned and looked out, watching in awe as three figures transformed out of the metallic shells that had formed the meteors. They were smaller than us, and I felt a smile come to my face at their distinctly feminine figures. Spinning to Sideswipe, I patted his hand. "Can you let me down, please?" He did so, with a hiss, and I got out of his hand, before quickly transforming. Then I grabbed his arm, stabilizing him until he could stand straight. "Sorry, Sides."

"Hey, if it gets you to call me Sides and let me lean against you, I'll take it." His optics flashed, and he grinned.

I rolled my eyes. "And _here's_ the Sideswipe of fanfictions, folks." At his confused look, I shook my head. "Never mind. Are you okay?" He was leaning on me heavily, and despite his words, his optics were dimmer than they should have been. All thought of greeting the new femmes flew from my mind as Sunstreaker joined me, reaching around me to help hold his brother up. It was a little awkward being caught between the mechs, feeling the heat and life in them both.

Awkward and disturbingly pleasant. A fangirl could get used to this.

"I told you to take it easy."

"I'm fine."

"Like pit you are." That time it was me, and I frowned at him.

He continued to smirk at me, not the least bit put out. He leaned in close, causing me to stiffen in surprise. He leaned in _so_ close, his nose plates brushed against mine. He stared into my eyes, before his smirk grew. "I'm fine."

Feeling my eyes narrow as he pulled away, and I growled before ducking out of between their arms and away. Shooting him a dirty look, I raised an eyebrow. "If you keep that up, you won't be." I promised darkly, before turning towards the femmes. _Obviously Sunstreaker's been talking._ I shot him a dirty look, which he ignored. I was a bit embarrassed to see they -the femmes- were watching us curiously, clicking quietly among themselves, but waved a little, almost shyly, in greeting.

They clicked some more, exchanging looks with bright blue optics, before the one on the left slowly raised a hand, looking at it a moment, before raising it, palm out, and shaking it back and forth, clipping the middle bot in the shoulder. Said middle bot seemed to blink and shoot the other one a look, before they chittered in what I guessed was laughter.

Ironhide stepped forward then, and began greeting them in their native language. He nodded deeply, clicking and whirling, before actually _smiling_ at the femme on the right, who stepped forward. Then she rushed him, wrapping her arms around his neck cables, and hugging him tightly.

"Chromia, I suppose." I muttered with a smile of my own, catching Ironhide's optics. I tapped my temple knowingly and he blinked at me, before turning back to his femme, clicking and whirling softly, holding her tight. "I'm happy she's okay. I'm happy they're all okay." _Especially after Optimus' story._ Then I paused, my smile fading. _But where's Elita? Is she alive? Is she the red Ferrari in the next movie?_

They looked at me curiously, the center femme almost sauntering over. I was immediately intimidated, not because I knew they were dangerous, but because of the gracefulness she almost oozed as she moved, her body moving in a startlingly alluring way. With her around, that kiss earlier might end up meaning nothing.

_What am I thinking?_ I blinked as she stood, staring at me. I never realized how small I was compared to the other bots, until I realized the smaller femmes stood eye to eye with me. Or in our case, optic to optic. _For all I know, that kiss was pure curiosity._

She clicked, tilting her head.

"Uh..."

"She wishes to know your name." Ironhide turned to me, holding tightly to the femme in only her protoform and not looking the least bit put out she was _only_ in her protoform. He clicked and whistled at the femme, who blinked at him, optics widening. Then he turned to me. "I've explained your situation to her, and informed her of your designation."

"Um thanks." I felt a little self-conscious, realizing I knew nothing about their language, and that was going to put me at a serious disadvantage with meeting new bots. Then it hit me, out of all the things I absolutely _had_ to learn, their language had to be the most important. What if I was ever alone, and ran into a new bot? "Hi." I waved again, at a loss for anything else to do.

She clicked at me, waving back with a curious look.

"She is greeting you, and says her name is Arcee." Ironhide raised an optic ridge then. "But you already knew that."

I nodded, grimacing a little. "Just like I know the bot you're holding is Chromia, your sparkmate... Well, a lot of people assume that, anyways." He blinked at me, before nodding, tightening his hold on the femme, and clicking down at her with a soft look in his optics. "And the other femme is Flare-up, I believe. They'll chose sleek motorbike forms. I'm sorry I don't know the make or models, and I'm not sure if they're even out yet. Arcee will be pink, Chromia purple, and Flare-up blue."

There was a pained grunt then, and I spun, immediately spotting as Sideswipe collapsed to one knee with Sunstreaker at his side. I stepped their way, being beaten to the punch by the Chevy twins, but Sunstreaker snarled at them, and subspaced a blade, which he pointed at them warningly. "What...?"

"Slag! His protective systems have kicked in!" Ironhide was at my side in a second, cannons spinning.

_Protective systems?_ Hadn't a fanfiction or two spoken about that? Some kind of instinct to protect one another? It would kick in whenever one bot was in trouble, or a lot of pain. But why was it kicking in now? There were no Decepticons.

I spotted Ironhide raising his cannon, and gasped sharply. "You can't blast him!" I grabbed his arm, glaring at him. "He's just trying to protect his brother!"

"And I would do the same, but we must get to Sideswipe to see what his injuries are! Ratchet is on his way, but he won't make it in time if something is seriously wrong!" Ironhide nearly threw me off, and I stumbled back, being grabbed at by arms. "It's just a stun cannon!"

"Let me try!" I pulled from the arms and ran towards the mech, only to skid to a stop when he spun the blade on me, and unusually blank look in his optics. I stepped forward, and he hoisted the blade with a wordless snarl. My heart hummed hotly in my chest as conflicting emotions ran through me. Instinct told me he wouldn't hurt me. I didn't know how I knew, I just knew. Sure, I could be wrong, but...

Maybe it was because I was a femme. Hadn't Optimus said femmes were regarded with honor? Respect? Or maybe it was because I was literally the least threatening thing in the area, and even he knew that, in his condition.

"Sunny!" He frowned. "It's okay, Sunny." I didn't know if using his nickname would work, or just provoke him, but his optics narrowed at me, and I think I _saw_ the conflict in his optics. I stepped closer, and the blade wavered. "It's me, Bella! I'm not a threat, remember? I'm helpless. I'm just a femme." Each sentence was punctuated by a slow, deliberate step, until my hand, which I held out, brushed against the blade, pushing it to the side. It was sharp, and I felt it cut into my hand when he hesitated.

I hissed, but didn't remove my hand. I _had_ to get to Sideswipe. The blade resisted, but slowly moved to the side, and he lowered it, turning to Sideswipe. "It's okay, Sunstreaker. I promise."

He glared at me, snarling, but Sideswipe gasped, clutching at his chest, and Sunstreaker jerked with pain.

"Sideswipe?" I knelt slowly, amazed that Sunstreaker let me approach. He kept glaring at me, but his optics also held some sort of recognition. I really wish I knew what it meant. He snarled if Ironhide or anyone else even took a step. Did he recognize me as his charge? "Sideswipe..." I pushed the thought aside, gently pressing my fingers to his hands over his chest. "Is something wrong with your spark?"

"T-The bond..." He grit his dental pads, hissing and growling, and I jerked in surprise when he grabbed my hand and linked his fingers with mine.

I stiffened, and gasped, as he placed my hand over his chest. I could feel the power ebbing and flowing, hot then warm. It was worrying. Whenever I felt Sunstreaker's chest against mine before, the heat was constant. This fluctuation didn't feel right. I trailed my fingers over the seam in his chest and he gasped again, Sunstreaker mimicking the sound, and both mechs jerked harshly. Sideswipe pressed towards the touch, while Sunstreaker jerked my hand away with a grunt.

"Sorry!"

"Slaggit!"

I jerked, and blinked in surprise as a yellow, pretty pissed looking bot rushed over. Sunstreaker jerked as well, but seemed to have snapped out of his initial state and allowed Ratchet to nearly drop painfully to his knees as he quickly began pulling Sideswipe's chest plates aside. I found myself staring, feeling like I was in a trance, at the beautiful glowing orb before me. I'd heard fanfictions that described sparks in so many ways, and I'd seen Bay's interpretation of them through the second movie, when Jetfire ripped his out to save Prime.

But this... This looked...like a crystalline orb with countless facets, filled with glowing stars and a core too bright to see clearly, without blinding yourself. It shone every shade of blue I'd ever seen, and I wouldn't be surprised if there were shades in there I'd never even imagined before. What worried me was the way a few cables attached to the back of his spark chamber sparked angrily, and his spark pulsed brightly, before dimming.

"Some of the repairs didn't hold. Slaggit! I should have kept him in the infirmary longer!" Ratchet immediately ran his fingers along a specific cable, and Sideswipe showed no sign of any reactions.

"I think there's something sensitive along his chest plates." I knelt next to Ratchet, watching as he stuck one of his fingers, turned needle, into the cable, and Sides stiffened, before groaning a little and collapsing completely. "Crap!" I reached out and grabbed his arm, helping Sunstreaker stabilize him, and watched as Sunstreaker wobbled dangerously a moment, before seeming to snap out of.

"What did you mean, about his chest plates?" Ratchet spared me a brief glance, before reaching in and seeming to work.

I noticed the femmes and bots were surrounding us, watching us worriedly, but pushed all thoughts of them to the back of my mind. "He grabbed my hand and placed it over his chest. I...didn't really think about what I was doing. I pressed my finger against the seam, and they both seemed to jerk."

He paused, and eyed me a long moment, before raising an optic ridge. "Remind me later, to teach you more about Cybertronian mechanics."

"What?"

"Never mind. Just give me a hand. Help Sunstreaker hold Sideswipe up, while I patch the leaking cable." He made odd clicks and such, but by the look in his optics, I could tell it was his way of cursing.

Glancing over at Sunstreaker, I watched as his optics danced worriedly over his brother's frame. He held him close, his expression intense as he watched and waited, but I noticed his eyes seemed kind of glazed. If fanfictions were right about their bond, I could imagine it was probably due to the sedative Ratchet must have fed Sides to help knock him out. I only hoped he'd stay online to help me keep Sideswipe up.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I was torn. It seemed like that was a more familiar feeling to me than I would have cared to admit. Once Sideswipe was patched, Optimus arrived only shortly after, carrying a trailer with him. Not the one he was rumored to have in Transformers 3. This one was a flatbed. Apparently it was going to be used in case any of the new arrivals were injured allies, but luckily the femmes were fine, so we used it for Sideswipe._

_It took a little coersion for Sunstreaker to transform, and I took on human form. As soon as I was human Bella, I was bombarded by the girls, but before I could comprehend all their questions, holo-Sunny was there, grabbing my arm and nearly dragging me to his alternate form. He didn't say a word, but his grip was almost painful, and I took the hint._

_I sat in the passenger seat, trying to ignore the uncomfortable tightness of the seatbelt around me, staring at the empty driver seat as the car drove itself. He never said a single word, and he radiated tension, so I just sat back, rubbing the arm rest of the seat as comfortingly as I could._

_Please let Sideswipe be okay._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Sept 10, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	51. Updates

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Thank you to **Faecat** who told me that evidently there's a 'Wheeljack Appreciation Month' this month. All of April. So dust off your Wheeljack muses, and let's bring some more love to the dangerously under-appreciated scientist, and hope that he doesn't blow us up in the process! And no, this isn't an April Fools prank. LOL! I actually had to ask that myself, when I first heard of it.

Anyways, here's the next update! :D

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Sideswipe ended up stabilized and set up at the base. He was forbidden to leave the medical bay for a week though, which meant Sunstreaker was going to stay there as well. Said yellow Ferrari hadn't spoken so much as one word since his brother collapsed, and as curious as I was about why he kissed me, now...really wasn't the time to ask._

_Nor was it really on my mind, at the moment. Not when Sideswipe was suffering._

_The femmes each took motorcycle forms, looking a little different from the ones I expected, but like I'd guessed, each took their usual colors. As soon as they were settled, Chromia and Ironhide disappeared. I didn't spare the Cybertronian brain cells to wonder where they went or why. Honestly, I was trying not to think of it. Flare-up and Arcee seemed to glue themselves to me, which was highly uncomfortable._

_I no longer felt the excitement of no longer being the only Cybertronian femme. With Arcee's first moves, I began to realize... I didn't compare to them. Not in sensuality, or battle prowess, or knowledge and experience, or anything like that. _

_Which meant... What chance did I have with the bots I liked?_

_Wait... 'I liked'?_

_-Bella_

_

* * *

_

**(Next Day, Bella's POV)**

_Of all the..._ I could have... Well, I didn't know, but for it to _suddenly_ sink in... Okay look, long story short, it finally sank in that I liked certain bots. Sure I _liked_ a lot of the bots before, and I kind of knew I had a crush on the twins -can you blame me?- and if I'd liked _one_ it wouldn't have been so bad... My issue? I liked _two_. Not one. Not a single bot. _Two_. And not just any two, for that matter. _Twins_. Hell, I didn't know what they felt about _that_ sort of thing, and pit if I was ever asking!

Let's not get into the fact, no one even knows if Sunstreaker ever settled down with a sparkmate, or has that ability in him to _do_ so. Then there's Sideswipe, who hasn't shown any interest in me beyond the same interest he'd show any femme, or any friend for that matter. And _then_, let's not forget the other femmes' arrival, and the fanfictions that usually pegged _them_ as being a good source of interest for the mechs.

"BeLa." Arcee's voice was soft, velvety, as she seemed to test human words with her vocal cords. "BEla." She blinked at me innocently, and as self-conscious as I felt, I couldn't really find it in me to dislike her, or even hate her. She was friendly and caring. I'd understood that much almost right away. She smiled then. "English is...odd. But googling the internet, I've learned your name is considered quite beautiful. I like it."

I blinked at her. We were standing in the main hangar, Flare-up standing on my one side, and Arcee on the other. The human girls were milling around, Sarah with her husband and likewise for Judy. Maggie was off working, and Mikeala was off with Sam and Bumblebee somewhere. Rika was over with Jazz, deep in discussion about their favorite musics.

"Thank you." I nodded a little, almost nervously.

"Are you alright?" She tilted her head a little. "I am not a...professional at human facial expressions-" Considering I was in Cybertronian bipedal mode, I'm not entirely sure why that mattered. "But you seem to have a lot on your processors."

"I don't think there's been a day, since coming here, I _haven't_ had a lot on my processors." I muttered dryly, getting the femmes to laugh. "I feel like I'm gonna turn into Prowl and start glitching." They giggled again, shaking their heads, and I sighed. "I'm just...having a very hard time adjusting to being Cybertronian."

"I can imagine." Arcee nodded a little. "Humans are quite different from our species. Come with us." She took my hand, leading me out of the hangar and across the base. "We spent most of yesterday learning about Earth culture and the island, and we found this remote spot with... I believe the human phrase is 'quite the view'."

I nodded a little, trying to walk lightly, and avoid stepping on any humans at the same time. I'll admit some part of me wanted to try and copy the way they moved, to learn their sensuality, but seeing as they had one wheeled foot, each, I was probably wasting my time.

As it was, I just had to avoid stepping on anyone, and that would be an accomplishment.

We ended up making our way through the woods, and despite everything, I couldn't help but laugh at the way the femmes struggled through the thick trees with single legs. In the end, Flare and Arcee had to transform and drive through it all, leading me.

We ended up at the edge of the forest, where there was a cliff dropping off to a large ravine with raging rapids. What really got me was at one end of the rapids was a waterfall that kicked up enough spray, the sun bounced off it, and it sparkled like diamonds. Some of the vines growing here and there up the rock walls were flowering, and I just _knew_ this would end up a popular spot.

"Wow." I breathed, smelling the salt and flowers in the crisp air.

"Earth has many beauties, though, avoiding stepping on humans can be quite difficult." Flare-up grimaced a little, shooting me a slightly apologetic look.

I only nodded. "Did you not _see_ me on our way out here? I know all too well what you mean." She giggled and I smiled a little. Despite my reservations and insecurities, these femmes were easy to get a long with. I'm still not sure why they chose to stick with me, maybe my being Cybertronian made them feel a little more at ease.

"I heard the twins took you on as a charge." Arcee blinked. "Is that information correct? I'm sorry if it is, but I've _never_ heard them take on a human charge before. I mean, I understand they've barely been on your planet any time, but the sheer disgust Sunstreaker shows with most humans... And Sideswipe tends to ignore them more than anything..." She shook her head, trailing off.

"Yeah, Sunny's always either glaring or snarling at the humans on base, I agree with that observation. I have even heard him fight with one human femme, 'Rika'. Apparently, that is usual for them." Flare-up added.

I nodded at her. "Yeah, they like to match wits, and Rika can usually 'give as good as she gets'." Raising an optic ridge, I settled down at the edge of the forest, on the ledge. "I wouldn't be surprised if they secretly enjoy the banter."

"Like you?"

Blinking, I frowned a moment. "Me?"

"We've received the memory files from bots present at, or having heard of, your verbal assaults on the yellow twin. From what we've heard, you 'give as good as you get', as well." Arcee slowly smirked. "There are even rumors you've managed to capture his spark."

For a very long, disturbingly quiet moment, I just stared at her. I'd heard her words, but I was torn between letting them slide right over my shoulder, or saying something about it. After all, _look_ at her. _And_ her twin. How could _I_ have his spark, when I was probably the least 'feminine' of the femmes? But...I didn't see any deception in her face, or maliciousness. Just honesty.

She blinked at me, her smirk fading. "Have I said something wrong?"

"Huh? Oh, no. I just..." I shook my head, trying to focus. "Those are rumors, and one thing you need to know about Earth is not to really put too much stock in rumors." I could feel my cooling fans switching on slightly, as I watched them exchange a look.

"Put...too much..._stock_ in them?"

"Um, you shouldn't believe them, more or less."

"So..you haven't captured his spark?" Flare-up's optics brightened. "That's funny. I could swear Sunstreaker doesn't just take any femme on."

"I blackmailed him into taking me." I groaned a little, realizing they were still _new_ and would have a _lot_ to research to understand half my terms. "I mean, I kinda forced his hand. I made him. I...knew about Sideswipe, and knew about their bond. I used it against him, to make him watch over me."

Flare-up nodded, not looking the least bit bothered by my confession. "How can that be? Sideswipe and Sunstreaker have been reunited, and yet he still claims you his charge."

"I think Optimus kind of asked him to."

"That's what I thought, but he says that Optimus volunteered to take you on as _his_ charge, when you first transformed, and he insisted on remaining with you." Arcee tilted her own head. "That has to mean something to you."

"It means he feels like he's in debt. Um, like he owes me a favor or something." I sighed, turning to the ravine.

"I understand you've been a great deal of help to us. It's because of you some of the Decepticons have removed themselves from the war, and some have even joined us. If not for you, Sunstreaker may not have reunited with us, and we would never have known Sideswipe was captured by the Decepticons."

"And you got us decent alternate modes." Arcee looked to her sister, both of them twirling awkwardly to show off their brightly colored armor.

"I..."

Suddenly, Arcee stiffened, and Flare-up stopped twirling. The pink femme's optics went distant, and I stood, realizing something was up. A moment later, and she smiled, her optics refocusing on me. "Optimus has received word you were looking for him. I just told him where we are. Bella, I know we barely know each other, but I do hope we can become friends. I believe there's a human saying... 'Us femmes need to stick together'?"

I recognized the honest words for what they were, and smiled at her. "You are very right." I nodded a little as she and her sister began backing away, stumbling over the trees and giggling all the while. "You're leaving?"

"We thought we'd let you talk to Optimus Prime in peace. Besides, we figured we'd go see how the twins are doing." Arcee's smile faded, and a worried look crossed her features. "Having a badly damaged twin-bond can't be good for them."

My own smile faded, and I once again felt...inadequate, but this time, instead of feeling threatened, I felt resigned. _They deserve real femmes._ I thought sadly, nodding to the femmes. _Ones who can speak to them in their own language. Who can understand what Ratchet meant by 'Cybertronian mechanics', and can actually protect themselves. Let's not even get into the fact those femmes practically _ooze_ sensuality._

They disappeared, transforming down and racing off, and I sighed heavily. "Wow, talk about feeling like an ugly duck." I heard the familiar roar of a semi and glanced up at Optimus, nodding as he drove down a path.

Suddenly, I was accosted by my 'vision' dream, of him driving down the path, through the woods. This was _just_ like that, and my processor was assaulted by images of him fighting the Decepticons and dying. Slamming my optics shut, I shuddered, wrapping my arms around myself as I took a deep breath.

_I changed things. I'm gonna change things. He's gonna be okay. _I chanted to myself, breathing deeply. Even at the sounds of his transformation, I just kept mentally chanting 'he's gonna be okay' over and over again.

"Bella?"

"I hate forests and semi trucks, combined." I muttered with a frown, shuddering. His look turned wary and a little hurt, and I shook my head. "That path you took, it reminded me all too much of when you were trying to protect Sam in my movies. When you died." I shuddered again, before walking forward and hugging him.

It seemed that was becoming a habit, but I wasn't complaining. Feeling him hug me back was so reassuring, as was the quiet rumble of his engine.

"I am not going to die that easily." His rumbling voice seemed to soften ever so slightly. Or it could have just been my imagination. Who knows?

I snorted a little, tightening my hold and looking up at him. "No, you really didn't." I gave him a dry glare. "You took on multiple strong Decepticons, and then were only offlined because you were stabbed in the back."

He raised an optic ridge, and I felt his hand stroke down my back in a soothing manner. "I am _here_. I am well, youngling."

My glare turned into a pout, and I watched his lip plates turn up. "I wish you'd stop calling me that." I whined a little, before sighing. "Anyways..." I pulled back reluctantly, as his expression cleared. "I got a really odd email from my dimension."

He nodded. "Wheelie showed me the images he took, and informed me of what you've said. It is good to hear we will have more allies joining us, soon. However, I get the feeling there is more to it, than that."

I nodded. "The third movie is set about...four years in the future, from now. After the Fallen has arrived and been beaten. He'll make a public demand for Sam, over the television broadcast channels, so billions of humans will be made aware of your existence. From what I can gather, that's not necessarily a good thing. There's at least quite a few that believe you shouldn't be on our planet."

He didn't look the least bit surprised. "Yes, I was aware that was a high likelyhood. Human opinions tend to vary greatly, and I've noticed that a great deal of them tend to fear what they do not understand."

"Tell me about it." I rolled my eyes. "But that's not my main worry. The protestors can go frag themselves, for all I care." I frowned, my eyes darting to the base beyond us. "Mikeala is. She's what I'm worried about, right now. It's been confirmed that the actress playing her, in my dimension, was fired, and it's more or less been confirmed they're going to do something with her character. I think... A lot of people are pretty sure 'Mikeala Banes' is going to be killed off."

Optimus went rigid. "No."

"I don't know, but it's a pretty solid guess. You'll need to keep a close optic on her, starting in three years." Mikeala was a good girl, and an awesome character. If I could stop her from needlessly dying, I was all for it. At least now we knew there was a threat to her, somewhere, out there. We could protect her now. I was _not_ going to let anything happen to her!

He abruptly nodded. "Understood. I will do so." Then his optics softened. "You feel as though you do not belong, but look at yourself. You are doing everything possible to help us, save bots and humans alike. You are perhaps our greatest ally."

"I don't feel like it." I murmured quietly.

Reaching out, Optimus put a hand on my shoulder armor. "And yet you are. Now come, I've just received word an outside source is attempting to hack into the NEST databanks with surprising skill." His optics narrowed as he turned.

Immediately, I fell into step beside him. "Wait, hack into...? It's not Soundwave, is it?"

"No, it's a human, Earth-bound source. From what I understand, it's a remarkably talented hacker going by the designation 'RoboWarrior'."

I froze then, and he must have sensed it, because he turned to look at me.

"You know him..?"

I nodded. "Reggie Simmons, former Sector-7 agent." I began walking again, my spark pulsing hotly, as I explained Reggie's part in the second movie. But his hacking the systems didn't make sense, unless he did this in the movie, and it just never showed it.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

"What?"

Silence. Staring.

A low growl. _"What?"_

Slowly, a smirk formed over facial plates, and Sideswipe hummed deep in his chest. While he wasn't allowed to move just yet, while the repairs set, and wouldn't be allowed to move for some time, that didn't mean he wasn't going to be a pain in his brother's aft. Especially all things considered.

"If you don't stop staring at me..." Sunstreaker's optics narrowed. He was relieved his brother was online and appeared to be well, which obviously Sideswipe could feel through their weakened bond, and that only seemed to fuel his brother's smirk, which in turn fueled _his_ annoyance. "Sideswipe..."

"You like her..." It was a singsong tone.

For a moment, the yellow twin only stared at his brother in confusion. Then, as it sank in, he went rigid and hissed darkly, narrowing his optics into a deadly glare. "I do _not_-"

"You liiiike her." Sideswipe chuckled a little. "You want to _huuuug_ her. You want to _kiiisss_ her. You want to_ marrry _her." With every sentence, Sunstreaker got more and more annoyed. "You want to _spaaarrrk_ with her."

"If you keep up with that, you'll never know what sparking's like." Sunstreaker growled warningly, his growl increasing in volume when his cooling fans switched on in response to his brother's teasing. Whether from embarrassment, or anger, only he knew.

"Hah! I _know_ you kissed her!"

"I know you _kissed_ Arcee!" Sunstreaker snapped back, causing Sideswipe's more playful tone to vanish. "I don't see you two running off to have sparklings!"

"_That_ was just experimentation with the sensory nodes, and their placement to increase the effectiveness of our holographic bodies, as well as sensitivity in my human holographic form. However, that was a curious part on my own and Arcee's nature. That has nothing to do with _you_ and _Bella_." Sideswipe's optics flashed. "Not to mention, it's weak, but I can sense how you feel around her."

As if to proove his point, a tiny tendril of longing and desire floated through his end of the link, towards Sunstreaker, and the yellow twin shuddered a little, cooling fans switching on even higher.

"Sides..." The low growl was his only warning, but Sunstreaker's optics were flashing darkly.

"I feel the same way, Sunny." Sides' expression softened. "She's beautiful, caring, sweet, and damn if some of the ways she moves..." He trailed off, his engine revving in response to whatever he was thinking. "She's attractive in any form she takes, surprisingly. Humans aren't exactly aesthetically pleasing, but those organic _optics_! Then she's determined, loyal-"

"Has a soft spot for the Decepticons."

Sideswipe raised an optic ridge. "She believes there is good in them. I witnessed her passionate speech to them, and I know you've caught at least glimpses of it through our bond, Sunstreaker." He vented, turning his head more towards his twin. "I believe she's right. I saw the vulnerability in Barricade's optics, and the less-than-hostile looks Dead End sent her."

"So, she's wormed her way into their sparks."

"She seems to have done that with a lot of the bots. I hear she's taken to Optimus like a little sister, of sorts."

Sunstreaker very slowly relaxed his strained pose, standing so very rigidly. "Optimus has that effect on a lot of us."

"Perhaps. She is one of a kind."

"Literally."

Sides snorted and groaned as his chest pulled. "Oh Primus, Sunny! Don't make me laugh!" His body shuddered a little, before he relaxed again, breathing heavily. "My point is, we could do a lot worse than her."

Sunstreaker didn't reply. He didn't have a chance to. The doors to the medical bay opened, and the newest femme arrivals walked in, looking worried. He glanced at them, seeing their beautiful look, bright blue optics, and the sensual way they walked. Yet...something nagged in his spark.

They were beautiful. They were powerful. And they were old friends, on top of all that.

But... They weren't Bella.

Oh slag, what was wrong with him now?

* * *

**Written** : Sept 14, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	52. Neutrals and Revelations

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Just a notice, but most of the bots are more or less background bots. The story is centered around Bella, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker, so there will be times with no mention of Wheelie (who, yes, will be coming back), or Frenzy, or the other humans, or the former 'Cons, etc etc.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

"This had better work, fleshling, or we'll show you everything we've learned as Decepticons." Dead End's optics flashed as he glared down at Simmons. He noted, with a hint of respect, that after their initial meeting, the human had seemed to relax remarkably, and now barely flinched at their tone.

Flashing his dark eyes up at them briefly, Simmons only grunted before returning to his work, typing furiously at a laptop computer Frenzy had secured for them. "Do you want this done or not? They've got one hell of a counter hacker on their end!" He hissed a little as a bunch of pop up screens began flashing, and a virus warning appeared. "Damn!" He typed furiously. "They've infected the computer with a kamikazi virus! I've got seconds to get this done, before the hard drive melts!" His hands worked even faster than usual.

Dead End's optics flashed to Barricade and Blackout, the bots all crouched lowly as Simmons worked. They were in an emptier part of the city, that was more parks by a lakeside than anything else, and it was late in the afternoon, the sun slowly setting and darkening the area around them. He had his headlights on, acting as illumination for the human, but angled in such a way that it wouldn't blind the human's weaker optics. _**'Think they know we're here?'**_

_**'I think they know **_**he's**_** here. If they've made mention of it to Bella, I'm certain they'll realize what's going on.'**_ Barricade glanced down at Simmons. "Have you informed them of your wish to speak to them?"

"I've sent the party invite. Dunno if they got it, or just junked it the moment they spotted it." Simmons growled, wearing his Sector-7 uniform suit once again. "I can't kick the virus. If you have any messages, you'd better hook up and send them _now_. It's the only chance you'll get." Then he seemed to pause. "I _still_ can't get over the fact I actually agreed to help you! What the hell am I on?" The last was a low mumble, and with an exchanged glance, the bots chose to ignore it.

Frenzy moved forward, looking ready to hook up, but Barricade growled and lowered his claw, grabbing the smaller bot. "There is a chance the virus is Cybertronian in creation, and in that sense would only cause harm if you hooked up." He glanced down at the tiny bot, before flipping his claw and letting Frenzy sit in his palm. The similarity between what he was doing, and what the bots did for the humans wasn't lost on him, and he shook his head to dismiss the thoughts. "We will wait. If they come to us, we know we succeeded. If not, we will only try again."

There was suddenly a flash, and the computer began to spark. With a cry, Simmons jumped away from it, and tossed it to the ground as something blew inside it. He stared down at the smoking, _stinking_ mess, before looking up at the bots with a raised eyebrow. "Not with this computer, you're not." He sighed and grumbled a little. "How'd I manage to get myself into this, again?"

Blackout raised an optic ridge and snickered a little. "You are just lucky?"

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

A low growl sounded, the engine rumbling angrily. "I can't believe you trust those slaggers."

Shaking my head, I sighed. "Those _slaggers_ saved your brother's spark." The car engine roared darkly, and despite the cheery yellow color, I shivered nervously at the rage in it. "Why are _you_ even here? Optimus could have taken me. We're not gonna go to kill them." We wouldn't have even known about the Decepticons being involved with Simmons, if he hadn't sent a meet-n-greet invite, with a background Decepticon signal that the bots were able to identify as Frenzy's.

Of course, Optimus had a field day realizing I'd told Barricade where Frenzy was -Though he didn't get mad. He _rarely_ gets mad. Lucky me- and I finally had to concede to a hookup of our systems so he could verify everything the 'Cons knew and didn't know. It was a little overdue, so I didn't complain. Sunny did, though. Oh, _boy_, did he complain!

"You're going. Decepticons will be there. Enough said."

I blinked, before raising an eyebrow. "Aww, Sunny, I love you too." I rolled my eyes, trying to ignore the threatening heat in my chest, and the way he swerved a little, before pulling back into place behind Ratchet. Luckily, Optimus managed to make Ironhide stay behind. Things were more than tense enough without him slagging more stuff up. Then, a thought hit me. Well, more along the lines of a memory, and I winced. "Uh, Sunstreaker..." I hesitated a moment, fiddling my fingers along the steering wheel. They danced over the curves lightly, and I felt the tiny shiver the Ferrari gave off. "Whydidyoukissme?" I blinked, blushed, and could have slammed my forehead into the steering wheel in front of me. I could have asked that any number of ways, and I freaking panic!

The ride was silent, and then there was a flash and holographic Sunny was sitting next to me, looking thoughtful.

I pursed my lips a moment, before shrugging and trying to seem nonchalant. "I mean, was it for experimental purposes? You mentioned being, um, interested in human mating. Was that it?" I blushed, feeling well... I'm not sure _what_ I felt at that prospect.

His thoughtful expression turned to a frown, and he looked at me from his peripheral. "I thought 'kissing' was a human way of showing affection." I blinked and he turned more fully to me, raising an eyebrow. "You asked to know what I thought of you. Whether I cared or not. I answered you. Just as you hug Optimus Prime, I kissed you."

"I hug Optimus Prime because I care for him like family." Anyone who knew the bot had to feel the same. That's why he was one of the more popular bots. If you didn't fall head over heels for him, regardless of the fact he's made of metal and an alien, you could relate to him in one way or another. "Kissing... Kissing can mean many different things." His eyes flashed to me.

"I understand that. I believe it was _I_ who told you, that you humans have far too many actions to expression certain things."

"Yeah, well, let me clarify..." I thought for a moment as we hit Tranquility. We'd just landed moments ago, and used an otherwise abandoned dock to do so. As such, it was out of town, for privacy's sake, and we were only just now getting back into town. "Kissing on the forehead generally means I respect you." I shot him a look, to see I apparently had his undivided attention. "Kissing on the hand, uh... I like you. Kissing on the cheek means I _really_ like you. Generally used for people who are romantically interested in someone."

"I see." He seemed to be thinking. "Is that not what kissing on the lip plates refers to?"

"Kissing on the lip, uh, plates, means I love you. It's for people who aren't just romantically interested. It's for people who are in love. In Cybertronian terms, I guess it would be better suited to, um, sparkmates and sparkmate interests."

Okay, so I might have been off a little, on the kisses. With the way the current world worked, any of those kisses could have meant any of the above reasons, or something totally different.

"So when I kissed you, it translated into a desire to have you as my sparkmate?"

I cringed at the innocent question, looking out the window to try and hide my expression. "More or less." _To me, at least._ "But I know that's not how you meant it."

"It's not?" The question was so quiet, I almost missed it, but thanks to my enhanced hearing, my head shot to him, to see Sunstreaker frowning almost thoughtfully. "Then how do you believe I meant it?"

I blinked, my spark pulling hotly in my chest. "As an experiment, like I said. You're curious about human culture, I was a femme nearby, so you just tried it." Then I grinned, my cheeks warming. "And you seemed to like it." I didn't miss the way his face shot to me, eyes wide, before his own cheeks actually turned red, and he glanced away, his expression hardening again.

Sighing, my grin faded. "Look, I just wanna know if...if I'm right. I want to to confirm or deny it, so at least I _know_. I might have been born human, but I'm a _girl_, Sunstreaker. I'm a femme. I have a spark. I have this..." I paused, thinking. "Spark-call. I want someone to sparkmate with. Though, I'm not sure I'm looking into it right this _second_." I blushed, and laughed nervously, my fingers trailing over the steering wheel again. "I'm not into casual sparking, or whatever you call it." Was I _really_ having _this_ conversation? With _him_ of all bots?

His head ducked, and the inside of the car warmed as I spoke. The more I went on, the warmer it got.

"I just wanna know what to make of it, what you think of me."

He vented sharply, looking troubled and surprisingly awkward, but before he could answer, he cursed darkly. "We have arrived at the destination point, and I am picking up four Decepticon signals, along with one human."

I sighed, nodding, and let my eyes fall shut a moment. It seemed like a 'saved by the bell' moment, to me. I wondered if I even _wanted_ to know his answer. On the upside, he didn't outright call me out, or say anything nasty. I prepared to get out of the car, planning to transform and greet whoever was waiting for us, but before I could, I felt a grip on my arm, and spun towards the source, startled.

Warm lips pressed against my own. This time, the kiss wasn't demanding or forceful. It was...surprisingly tender, almost hesitant. His lips moved against mine, not dominating or forcing mine to mold to his, but actually working softly. Before I even had much of a chance to respond, he pulled back, and looked away, growling. "Barricade has noticed your presence. I should really tint my front windshield more." Growling softly, he glanced to me, the normal hardness of his eyes boring into my own. "That was...not an experiment. Nor was the first."

He released my arm and his holographic form disappeared. The door opened, and the seatbelt released it's grip on me. Almost dazed, I stumbled out of the car and moved safely away before we both transformed. I blinked, seeing the clearly awkward look in his real optics as he glanced at me briefly, before looking away. Then I turned to the others.

And my cooling fans switched on as Skids and Mudflap snickered, and Optimus raised an optic ridge at us. It was Barricade's snort that caught my attention, and I turned towards him, feeling my optics narrow. "I thought we wouldn't see you guys again."

"Oh, really? That's news to me!" The voice caught my attention, and I glanced down, staring at Simmons. "So the NBEs have females, too. Does that mean your kind can have babies?"

"Watch it, little man." I growled darkly. "Autobots were sworn never to harm humans. Luckily, _I_ never took that oath. I do owe you for what you did to Bumblebee, after all." I could remember clearly the image of Bumblebee writhing on the table, when they blasted him with energy. I remembered that little bot, made from the cell phone, that Simmons destroyed with no sympathy what-so-ever. I growled so darkly, I didn't miss the shocked, worried looks several of the Autobots gave me, including Sunny himself.

"I heard you needed me for the second movie of yours." He smirked confidently.

"Needed you? No." My optics narrowed and I crouched down, getting close until he stepped back, nervously, his bravado fading as quickly as when he'd faced down Optimus Prime in the first movie. "There's _nothing_ about you we need." I growled lowly. "I said you acted like an ally, but hell if I see you as one. I will _never_ forgive you for destroying that little cell phone bot _you_ brought to life in the first place. Nor will I _ever_ forgive you for hurting Bumblebee, who was _only_ trying to _help_. You're a monster. You're worse than Megatron, the Fallen and Unicron united!"

Okay, maybe I was going a little overboard, but Primus! I was _so_ pissed off at him right then and there!

Optimus stepped closer. I felt it in the trembles in the ground, and in the flash of blue and red in my peripheral, as he knelt next to me. I growled again. "As far as I'm concerned, you need to be dribbled across an Autobot-sized basketball course, and beaten to a bloody pulp. You think you're better than everyone because you _had_ a 'do as you like and get away with it' badge."

"Apparently he was wrong, if that badge was taken from him." Optimus spoke quietly, and when I glanced over, he clearly wasn't happy. "Reginald Simmons, you have been relieved of your duties in the no longer existent Sector-7. Isabella is right. We have no use for you."

"You can always use another hacker."

"Hah!" Sunstreaker smirked, crouching next to me and leaning forward cockily. "The young hacker we have on our team made short work of your own attempts. You would be useless to us, and I don't know what the others would think about having to work with a former enemy."

I paused, glancing at him. Briefly, I wondered if there was a double entendre about that or not. Then I turned to Barricade, standing. "You said we'd never meet again." I glanced briefly to Blackout, who towered over us. "So why are you here?" I spotted a smaller, silver bot scaling Barricade's leg, up to his chest, and all the way up to his shoulder. "Frenzy."

"Y-You femme bot 'C-C-Cade spoke of." He stared at me curiously. "Y-Y-You end war for 'Cade and F-Frenzy." He blinked, looking frighteningly innocent.

I paused again, frowning. "I didn't _end_ anything. The war is still raging, and like I told Blackout, whether you want to be a part of it or not, chances are it's gonna follow you. I don't understand. What does any of this have to do with meeting us here, with Simmons?"

"Your memory banks listed him fighting for your pathetic world." Barricade shrugged. "The Decepticons outnumber you, even without us. You _will_ need all the help you can get. Also, he's been spying on Cybertronians, hacking into any and all files with footage of the Mission City battle, and posting it on the internet for your fleshlings to see."

Sunstreaker growled at him, lowly.

I glanced to Optimus. "I don't want _anything_ to do with him." I didn't like this man. Not at all. Not after what he did. Ally or not, all I wanted to do was slap this man, but considering _what_ I was now, if I tried, I'd probably kill him. Since I didn't want to kill a stupid, cocky and evil, but somehow innocent man, it was just better if I didn't have anything to do with him. "Otherwise, you can do what you like."

He nodded to me, grimly, optics lighting as they turned to Simmons. "He will come with us, and undergo extensive questioning. As for the rest of you, what does any of this have to do with the lot of you being here?"

"W-W-Watch over l-little s-sister bot." Frenzy's optics were on me, as my head spun to him. He didn't seem the least bit put out by what he said, but as the hiss from Barricade proved, he was the only one.

"Slagging _glitch_!" Barricade snarled darkly.

"Wait, you guys have a femme, too?"

I looked to Barricade, as he lifted his optics. He was glowering darkly, but I suddenly understood his reaction. "You mean me?" Barricade snarled, and I stepped forward, straightening. "Barricade?"

"What's going on?"

"That glitch? But you were born human. I think I'd know, I got your nasty body fluids all over my interior, and it was a pain in the aft to clean!" Sunstreaker's whine caused Blackout to snort in amusement, and Dead End smirked. "You got a problem, fraggers? You're not human. There's _nothing_ keeping me from offlining you right here and now."

"Barricade..." I stared at him, and he folded his claws over his chest. He glared at me, very much like the Barricade I knew from the movies, but I raised an eyebrow. For a long moment, I could only stare at him. After all, Frenzy had just called _me_ 'little sister bot'. But, Barricade's sister was dead, and I _wasn't_ her. As flattered as I was to even be in the same category, I felt nervous as well. Would that only complicate things further? The Autobots were _just_ starting to trust me again!

"Don't take it the wrong way." He all but snarled at me. "You _resemble_ her, nothing more. That is _all_ Frenzy was referring to."

"'Cade hads a sis?" Mudflap raised an optic ridge. "Buts Bella ain't her. Can't be. Bells was human, wasn't she?"

"Don't call me that, you pathetic heap of scrap!" Barricade snarled at them.

"So what, you want to watch her? That'd involve you having to come to the base, and frag if anybot's gonna allow that." Sunstreaker had straightened next to me, standing so close, it was impossible not to feel the heat emenating from his chest plates. "You'll be slagged the moment you even attempt to step off the ship."

Barricade shot me a look then, as if to say 'see?', and I shook my head, lowering it. I should have known better. They actually _want_ to show up, to help us, to...watch over me...? The idea didn't seem likely. However, they wanted to be at the base, were putting themselves in danger, and I should have known better than to think they'd be welcome. Not that I thought they'd be _welcome_, but...

"Yo, I's call out minibot up there! I's offline him good."

"I'll take on 'Barricade'." Sunstreaker's voice took on an all too gleeful tone, and I found myself shooting him a glare. I knew I should have expected his reaction, but I still couldn't help but be hurt, and insulted for look seemed to startle him, because whatever smirk was growing, quickly faded. "What? Oh, come on! Don't tell me you actually _trust_ them!"

"Maybe I do!" I snapped, spinning on him darkly. "Maybe I'm not as jaded as you! Maybe I can see the good in bots, when all you see is darkness! They _saved_ Sideswipe, Sunstreaker! They didn't have to, but they went out of their way and did. You'd think that'd earn them just a _little_, _itty bitty_ bit of trust, or even respect!"

"Alright, don't start, the lot of you."

I turned to Optimus, to see him shaking his head.

"If you do wish to come with us, unfortunately, it will have to be as prisoners, until I can confirm your stories through a memory file transfer, and your optics and sensors will be dampened so you cannot trace where we're going. We've recently set up a brig, and the four of you will be confined there until I've managed to speak to the others, and we've decided what to do."

"Slag that!" Barricade took a step back. "You'd just as soon offline us, and if we go with you, we'll be prisoners! We won't even be able to defend ourselves!"

"If you are comparing my leadership abilities to that of my brother, I would prefer if you didn't." Optimus' optics darkened. "I'm not a merciless killer." He didn't cringe at what he said, but I caught the way his fingers flexed, almost instinctively. I knew some part of him was tortured by what his brother was doing, even if he didn't show it. "If you've truly decided to defect, your Decepticon internal communications will have to be changed to Autobot, and Ratchet will have much work changing your energy signatures to that of an Autobot."

"We don't want to become _Autobots!_" Blackout growled.

"I never said you would." Optimus was back to his ever patient self. "Merely that we would be unable to allow you to remain with Decepticon internal communications while you remain on the base, and an Autobot energy signature will help cloak you from the Decepticons, as well as to identify you to us." He folded his massive arms over his chest, optics flashing my way briefly, before landing back on Barricade. "If you wish to return to the base, to watch over Isabella-"

My optics narrowed dangerously. That was twice now he'd called me by my full name. I had no idea if he was trying to send me some kind of message, but damn! If it was, just spit it out already!

"We'll do it." It was Dead End's voice that surprised everyone. When all bots, former 'Cons and Autobots alike, turned his way, he shrugged, as if he didn't have a care in the world. "We're on our own out here, and easy pickings for Screamer. All he's gotta do is trace our signals. If there's a chance, after we prove ourselves, of course, of a semi-peaceful life on this base of yours, I'm all for it. As long as I don't have to become a human-doting Autoscum." Then he grinned, despite the numerous dark looks he was getting. "The fact there will be femmes there, only helps."

"Bella's the _only_ femme there." Blackout shuttered his optics with a vent. When no one agreed with him, and a few of the Autobots actually exchanged looks, he blinked at them, and frowned. "Isn't she? You know I'm talking about Cybertronian femmes, right?"

"There is much to speak of." Optimus shook his head again. "Much to speak of, and much to do."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Wow. Just...wow. It's actually happening. I thought they'd been serious when they said they were leaving, but then they come back with Simmons, and Frenzy refers to me as the 'little sister bot', and I'm guessing from the awkwardness 'Cade's been giving off that it must have _some_ bearing. Does he see me as a sister? Because we more or less only just met._

_Nah, couldn't be. We just didn't know each other. It was probably just Frenzy being Frenzy._

_Then there's the fact that Skids and Mudflap begged Prime to let them at least offline Frenzy. His size alone made him the number one threat to the human allies. Know his response? He chittered, scaled down Barricade in a flash, and ran over to me, scaling up my body. It was an odd feeling as he climbed, and apparently Sunstreaker didn't take too kindly to it, because I actually had to scold him from flicking at Frenzy, and slap his hand away._

_That didn't sit too well with him._

_I wonder if I didn't just take a massive ten steps backwards, agreeing to having them come along, and befriending him._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Sept 16, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	53. Hey, Baby

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Was it really so hard to understand where they came from? We got back to the base, and they were locked away, under guard, until Ratchet could see to all of them, disarming their weapons and turning their internal communications to Autobots. Of course, being 'Cons, they bitched and moaned about having to share a base with humans, but when they were walking along, they made sure never to step on one._

_You'd think _that_, alone would mean _something_. Or the fact they saved me. Or the fact they saved one of their own. _Or_ the fact they came to us willingly._

_Nope._

_Of course not._

_Asking the majority of the bots to give them a chance, is like asking Ironhide to set down his cannons and become a Cybertronian, peace-promoting hippie, complete with dreadlocks and all. Or, for that matter, like asking Ratchet to get a decent bedside manner._

_Wasn't gonna happen._

_So why did I try? I should have known they wouldn't be welcome. I mean, I knew a lot of the bots would be nasty to them, but to actually _see _it, really made me wonder if it was worth having them on the base at all. It couldn't be good for them. And I sincerely doubted, raised as Decepticons, they'd take it much longer._

_My only saving graces were Optimus and Sideswipe. The former had seen my detailed memories, knowing what I knew. He'd taken to speaking to Barricade like he was the leader, and had taken to offering him a _little _leeway, like decent energon and making sure they were for want of nothing but...well...fresh air and blue skies. The latter, though clearly unhappy about all this, had forced his way out of the medical bay to speak to me about it._

_And surprisingly? When dealing with everyone bitching and moaning, he was there. Offering his voice in support of my thoughts._

_Why couldn't all mechs be like him?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

"Oh come off it!"

"Off what? I'm not on anything. Well, other than my foot pads and the floor. And I can't remain standing and 'come off it', if that's the case. I'm not a Seeker, thank Primus."

"That's not what I meant, and stop babbling. You can't honestly think this is a good idea."

"Frag no! I never said I did. I just trust the femme's instincts better than you, is all."

I raised an eyebrow at them, and frowned. '_The femme'? I have a name, you know!_ I folded my arms over my chest, glaring at them silently as they bickered.

"Instincts? She's trusting _Decepticons!_"

"They saved us!"

"I'm right here, and that's what I keep saying!" I finally hollered, catching the undivided attention of both bots. At least Sideswipe had the decency to look sheepish at apparently forgetting I was in the room. Sunstreaker just glared at me. "I haven't known your war, and I'm sorry I'm not as jaded as some, but I trust Barricade. If he trusts the others, I trust _his_ judgement! He didn't have to save us, but they did. Don't you think that's a little, I dunno, advanced for a _Decepticon_ trick?" They weren't always known for subtlety, after all.

"Especially with Starscream involved." Sideswipe nodded. "This is all just too involved for one of their schemes. I know, Sunny, I don't trust them either, but I'm not gonna walk around with my swords hanging out the entire time-"

I snorted at the mental image the words 'swords _hanging_ out' provoked. I could just see Sideswipe with his limp swords hanging from his wrists as he sauntered around. The mental image only got worse from there, and I shook my head nearly violently as the mechs looked at me funny. Sighing, I sobered quickly. "Look, I'm not asking you to be buddy-buddy and braid each other's cables or anything-" And cue another really bad mental image. "I'm just asking you to keep an open, uh, processor."

"That would get rather drafty." Sideswipe mumbled with a thoughtful frown.

With a hiccup of laughter, I slapped my hand over my forehead, and shook my head again. "Never mind."

"The fact is, we now have Decepticons on the base, likely planning something behind our backs." Sunstreaker growled. "I can't stop it, but I sure as pit am not happy with it!"

"When _are_ you happy?" I gave him a dark look. "You said it earlier, that kiss wasn't an experiment. If you care for me in _that_ fashion-" And the idea raised about a million 'what so special about me?' questions, trust me. "-then _trust_ me!"

"If they betray us, the human deaths will be on your hands." He snarled lowly.

I flinched. My mind ran back to the beach, the people screaming and flying. _What did the government tell their families? Was anything done to at least...ease the loss? I still can't believe people _died_ because of me._ I folded my arms over my chest, and turned away from the twins. _I already have blood on my hands. I can feel it. I doubt I'll ever _stop_ feeling it._

"Bella?"

I ignored Sideswipe's voice and wandered out of their temporary quarters, wandering aimlessly down the halls. They didn't follow me, and I didn't know if that was a good thing or not. The pain was bad. How did they _deal_ with it? I mean, sure, I knew loss of life was to be expected... I guess... I just never expected to be the _cause_ for the loss of life.

And there was no upside to this, either. No comfort in the fact I didn't know any of them, and wouldn't know their families if I saw them. No comfort in the fact they _might_ have died painlessly. They still _died_. Needlessly.

All...because of me.

Suddenly, the novelty of being a giant alien robot seemed to wear off. Not that I was overjoyed to be sixteen some-odd feet tall, and made of metal, but still... There had been a 'cool' factor to it before, that fled out the window now. I was part of a war. A deadly war with insane bots that would do anything to catch and use me. Including harming innocent people. Killing them.

I wandered out of the base, my arms wrapped around my chest, and across the island. I didn't really _think_ about where I was going, until the rushing of the waterfall hit me. I glanced up, shaking out of my thoughts, and sank down into a sitting position at the sight before me. Somehow this place had a soothing presence and I needed that now, more than ever.

"People got _killed_ because of me." The idea caused an uneasy, heavy feeling to settle into my stomach, and my chest to tighten. _And their families are gonna be lied to._ My eyes burned, and I let the tears fall. I should have grieved for these people earlier, by rights. I had no idea _how many_ died, and honestly, I didn't think I could handle knowing.

It was about then I became aware of a heaviness in the air. A faint roaring. Something pinged on my internal, sensors, but that wasn't what made me stiffen. It was the familiarity of the sound. The last time I'd heard it, we were at my apartment. My cell and my computer were acting up, and there was a roaring.

...Right before the sisters arrived.

_Oh sweet Primus, it's raining Autobots!_ I thought randomly, hopping to my feet. Then I paused. "Since when did any land on the island?" I looked up, frowning. Sure I didn't _know_ if any landed at the actual base, but something seemed odd. When I spotted the flaming meteor, it looked tiny, so it still had to be a good distance away.

But something flashed red in my vision. Something warned me...

I jumped back several steps, tripping over the trees as I moved. It vaguely hit me I was heading towards the edge of the island, to the shore, but I didn't pay any attention to it. An almost foreign panic hit my spark so hard, I stumbled again, and ducked and ran to the East. I had to make sure it didn't land in the water. I _had_ to catch it!

_What am I doing? It's just a meteor! It's too _small_ to be an Autobot or Decepticon!_ My more rational side to my mind screamed, even as it really sank in that the meteor wasn't as far as I'd thought. It was just _really_ small. _It's _just_ a meteor! That can't be a bot! _Red flashed, and I think I caught a vague sense of protectiveness surge through me. Something inside me screamed otherwise. That _wasn't_ just a meteor. Despite my 'rational' thoughts, I couldn't stop myself from running.

Even as my feet splashed in the surf and fresh red warnings flashed in my vision, I reached out. The roaring was louder, a deep, painful whistling accompanying it. The meteor was almost upon me.

Belatedly, I wondered, _could_ I even catch it? Or would I die trying?

I didn't have a chance to think. I was moving without thought, feeling like some other force was guiding me. The moment my hands went out, there was an impact so painful, I screamed as loudly as I could. I felt something snap in one wrist, and something hot almost spraying out over my arm. My vision went entirely red as I stumbled deeper into the water, pain emanating from my legs as well, as I felt something shorting out.

Everything spun and went black and white, but the panic seemed to be fading, which was _really_ odd. You'd think my panic would grow, with the pain I was in, not fade. My hands curled around the small object as tightly as I could without crushing it, and I stumbled again, my legs shaking badly enough to threaten giving out.

My vision slowly cleared, and I panted, whimpering in pain. I was frozen in the surf, feeling the icy waters as they circled around and crashed against my legs, causing more things to pop and short out. My legs grew even shakier. Slowly, I looked to the beach. I was maybe _two_ steps away from it, but I couldn't move. I was quite literally _frozen_. I felt that, if I tried to move, I'd fall. Not to mention, standing as still as I could minimized the burning agony, that was still bad enough to make my eyes water.

"Bella!"

I blinked, spotting a group of bots heading my way. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe were in the lead, with Optimus and Ratchet behind them, and Jazz standing at the edge of the base with Ironhide and the femmes and other twins, looking shocked and worried. The ground shook with their thundering steps, and my legs felt numb and tingly. I wanted to open my mouth to tell them to stop, that they were going to make me fall, but I couldn't think well enough to move. In fact, I could barely think at all. It was like my mind just shut down, my body threatening to do the same.

Then I felt movement in my hands.

I startled, glancing down, and almost hesitantly opened my fingers. The tiny, metallic orb I held began to shift. Gears parted and shifted around, until arms and legs formed, and an utterly tiny head. I watched, shocked beyond thinking, as the largest, most innocent blue optics appeared, staring up at me. I couldn't judge the expression. I was just... I was...

"Primus! It's a sparkling!"

"What? But how? Our sensors never even picked up on a meteor in the area!"

"Oh slag!" I glanced over, and blinked as Ratchet seemed to sway, turning to Sunstreaker. "Don't tell me you two were rubbing chest plates again." He looked dazed, like he was ready to fall over.

I took a deep, shaky breath, my vision flickering in and out, even as Sunstreaker snarled lowly at the medic, and Sideswipe snorted on a half muffled laugh. "I..." They turned to me immediately, my near whimper seemingly catching their undivided attention. "I..." I...what?

I...was seeing, but I wasn't processing. I think... I think this was shock.

Fresh shouts caught my attention then, and I slowly looked to the base. My vision was going dark, slowly. Things were getting blurry, and I was starting to feel really cold. Why wasn't I moving? I could feel something hot running down my injured arm, dripping off it, and my legs were completely numb. My chest was starting to tighten, and I could barely breathe.

Spotting the black mech with the crimson optics, I whimpered again. Things began to sway then, in my vision. No. It wasn't everything around me that was swaying. It took me a moment to realize, it was _me_ swaying.

"Stop right there, 'Con!"

_'Con...? B-But I thought...they were locked up...?_

"Sunstreaker, stop!"

"But Sides-"

"Just stop it!"

"Get out of my slagging way, you pathetic heaps of scrap metal!" The snarl was startlingly close, and there was a splash. "She's in pain, and all you fraggin' Autoscum can do is _stand_ there?" Arms were around me, and my legs finally had enough and gave out. Luckily, the bot was fast, and I was scooped up.

I whimpered in pain, my hold shifting on the tiny bot I held, to keep it firmly pressed to my chest. I don't know why I was doing it, but it felt...oddly right. It shifted in my hold, but pressed down against my chest plates.

"Primus! And she's holding a sparkling! Where's your 'bravado' now, glitches?" We were moving. I was held gently but firmly. "A _femme_! A fragging _femme_! I thought _you_, of all bots, cared for her!"

"Don't you _dare_ presume to know me, 'Con." It was a low, deadly snarl, and the sparkling in my arms whimpered in response. "Let her go!"

"Enough! All of you! Just stop it! We have an injured femme to attend to!" Ratchet was at my side, and I managed to pry my eyes open to stare at him. My arm and my legs hurt like hell, and I could barely move the fingers in my one hand. "Slaggit, she damaged her data transfer port again, this time far more severely. One of her main energon lines has been damaged too. Barricade, I need you to bring her to the medical bay so I can seal the damaged lines and get to work on repairs."

A low growl was his only response.

"Bella, I'm going to give you something to put you into recharge, so you don't feel the pain." Ratchet leaned over me, and even with my vision swimming, I could make out the pain and annoyance in his optics. "You will be alright. You've done a very brave thing."

"I...d-didn't know..." I breathed deeply, trying to stay awake, even at a tiny pricking sensation in my arm. "J-Just...n-n-needed to catch...t-the meteor." _So tired...and I hurt..._

"I can explain that later, youngling. I have a lot to explain to you, it seems. For now, recharge." His voice turned oddly soothing.

Wait, _soothing_? _Ratchet_?

Or maybe he just gave me the good crap. Who knows?

Even as my world slowly went black, I couldn't relax my hold over the sparkling. It's like my body was acting against my own will. Not that I was complaining. Nor was the sparkling, for that matter.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

Barricade glared at the bots. Sunstreaker had his blades out, pointing at his throat cables, and the darkest most threatening glare in his currently crimson optics. 'Cade smirked briefly. "You'd make an excellent 'Con." He then grunted as Sunstreaker stepped forward quickly, with near lightning fast reflexes, and pressed a blade dangerously against his throat cables. However, he didn't even flinch when he felt a tiny pop and warmth dripping sluggishly down his throat.

"Don't insult me." He snarled lowly. His restraint was amazing. He was visibly trembling as he seemed to fight the urge to end the Decepticon's existence, but somehow he did.

Sideswipe had his own blades out, but he quickly subspaced them again and stepped forward, placing a hand on his brother's arm. "Bella needs us. He jumped into the water to save her, Sunny." He spoke quietly, eyeing the Decepticon warily.

"How'd you even know she was out here?" Sunstreaker didn't back down, though his optics flashed to a dark violet. The only sign he was even remotely considering what Sideswipe was saying.

With a growl, Ratchet moved next to Barricade and pushed the blade away from the 'Con's throat cables, confidently. "I think we _all_ heard her scream." He turned to the femme, and began working on her wrist, fumbling when he realized that even in her more relaxed state, her grip over the tiny sparkling was firm.

And no one missed the way the sparkling curled into her hold.

"Primus, a _sparkling_?" Optimus stepped forward, shocked, looking at the tiny one. It had antennai like you'd find on Bumblebee, with a little silver protoform and bright, sky blue optics. And it was also perhaps the smallest sparkling he'd ever seen, nearly invisible in the smaller hands of Bella. "If she hadn't been here, would we ever have known about it?" He stared at the femme, frowning in concern. "Ratchet, show Barricade to the medical bay and attend to Bella. Ironhide will stand guard outside." He shot Barricade an apologetic look, to which the 'Con clearly ignored. "If the sparkling refuses to move from her hold, do not force it." He vented sharply.

"It arrived here alone." Barricade's optics were thoughtful as it gazed down at the tiny, innocent creature. "If it's creators were not with it-"

"There is a good chance it's creators are offline." Optimus nodded, meeting Barricade's optics briefly. "It's been through enough. We will find out whether it is a femme or mech later, and decide what to do with it then. For now, let it remain with Bella."

"'Decide what to do with it'?" Barricade growled, optics flashing, and leaned back as Sunstreaker's blade appeared at his throat again. "Calm down, you rusty bucket of bolts." He grumbled. "I merely think it's pretty straight forward 'what to do with it'. Bella doesn't want to let it go. It doesn't appear to want to move. If it wants to remain with her, let it." He spoke like it was common sense. Then again, maybe it was.

His words clearly startled the bots, but he didn't so much as spare them a second glance, turning and limping off after Ratchet, several places in his own legs sparking with every step.

Optimus watched them worriedly. He was admittedly shocked by Barricade's actions. If there was one Decepticon to trust, it appeared to be him, but he couldn't bring himself to trust the others just yet. Not Blackout or Dead End. And he knew, that as a Decepticon, they knew of a surprising amount of loyalty. He couldn't offer Barricade true quarters as a 'guest' without extending the same offer to the other bots. And not having them under guard was something he just wasn't ready for.

With a mental apology to Bella, he vented.

He watched them go, before turning his optics to the twins. He watched Sideswipe ease Sunstreaker's blades to the ground, his words soft and soothing. He watched Sunstreaker's optics fleck blue, before turning back completely, still shaking as he visibly restrained himself.

They turned slowly, Sideswipe's grip on Sunstreaker's arm the only thing keeping the yellow twin grounded. It warmed his spark to see how deeply they cared for Bella, but he was worried about the complications of having the Decepticons here. More to the fact it would distract his soldiers, have them 'jumping at shadows' as the human saying went, then that they may actually _be_ betrayed.

Venting, he began towards the base, casting only a brief second glance to where Bella's energon stained the rough ocean waters.

_If not for her, I have no doubt that sparkling would have landed in the water and offlined, before it caused a blip on any of our sensors. I will have to speak to Ratchet. Femme or not, her sensors would have to be calibrated higher than normal for her to have caught that._

Then he glanced to the base, to where Jazz watched the others pass, worried.

_Or maybe it wasn't her. Maybe... Maybe it was the ancient Primes, once again._

* * *

**Written** : Sept 20, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	54. Sunfire

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Okay, so there's plenty of pleasant ways to wake up. The smell of coffee. The sun warming your face. A cute little kitten snuggling into you. But then, there's plenty of unpleasant ways, too. The alarm clock ringing off the table, a neighbor banging around upstairs...

Someone plagarising your story...

There is nothing worse than waking up to find someone has plagarised your story. You know, I don't mind someone borrowing ideas from my story, or characters (OCs), just credit me for them and it's fine. But to copy and paste? It's not only lazy and wrong, it's extremely hurtful to the author. My storyline might not be the most original, but I do take pride in the work I've done. And to see it posted on someone else's profile, under their name, with no credit given due?

It's very upsetting. Very discouraging, too.

When I say someone can borrow an idea, I don't mean they can copy and paste my story, chapter for chapter, word for word. I mean you can borrow a scene. A line. A character. The basic skeleton of the story, even. Just make sure, if it's original and not owned by TF or another author, that credit is given due.

Is that really so much to ask? -_-'

And I'm sorry for ranting, but I can't help but feel violated. I'm flattered people like my stories, but plagarism is violating to me. I worked literally hours a day, seven days a week, for almost a year on this story, and someone comes along and starts posting an exact, word for word replica under their own name? I don't bloody well think so.

On that note, thank you to those who reported it, and reviewed, asking the author if they had permission, or stating how exact to my own work it was like. And thank you very much to the readers who informed me of the plagarism, so I could do something about it. Last I checked, it had been removed. :)

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

_"Any sign of the traitors?"_

Sideways lowered his head, his optics flashing darkly. _I haven't looked. "Not yet, sire, but the Decepticons are scouting the area and currently widening their search area for any sign of them. There has been brief sighting of the femme, but she was under heavy guard, and left again, when three more Autobots landed on Earth."_

_"Three _more_?"_ Starscream's shout echoed through the halls. _"Why didn't they engage the weaker bots?"_

_"Sire, they were femmes. Most of the Decepticons don't feel comfortable attacking femmes, no matter what faction they are."_

_"They will do as I order, or their 'honor' will be the last thing they need to worry about."_ With a low growl, Screamer's optics flashed darkly, and he stood, nearly stalking over to Sideways. _"The femmes will not give second thought to offlining us."_ He suddenly smirked. _"Why do you think I ordered that assassin to take out the femmes back on Cybertron?"_

Sideways' optics widened in shock. He didn't feel the least bit guilty, but the confession had certainly been unexpected. He'd seen the move as clever, on the part of whoever had done it. He'd seen them as a possible worthy adversary, but to learn it was _Starscream..._ His optics narrowed, but he quickly cleared his expression. _I will have to watch him more carefully, I guess._

_"If we took exception to the femmes, we would be faced with an all femme army, and already have been defeated. Especially with Prime's femme mate in the lead." _He growled, before smirking. _"Now where's the femme's strength and bravery? What good did it do her against a foe with superior processor capabilities?"_ He chuckled darkly, before quickly spinning to face Sideways, his expression darkening once again. _"Find the femme. Find _any_ of the femmes! We'll use them to breed us a new army, and break an Autobot in the process!"_

He turned on his heels and stalked out of the room, leaving Sideways behind him. He never noticed the narrowing of the bot's crimson optics, or the way the silver Audi fingered one of his smaller, yet no less deadly blasters, hidden in a secret holster on his thigh.

_Soon. Soon I will take him out of the picture, and we'll see how _he_ fares against a 'foe with superior processor capabilities'._

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

I was back in that damn desert again. What _was_ this place? Was this ancient Earth, where the Primes battled the Fallen for the key to the Sun Harvester? Somehow, I had a feeling it was. It was too sandy and Earthen to be the Cybertron I had a mental image of, from fanfictions. It also resembled the mostly barren lands, where the Primes first built the machine, only to find very young, but sentient life on the planet.

Where the Fallen betrayed them, and they gave their lives to hide the key and protect the planet.

Why did I keep ending up here?

And why was it, I kept spotting the most unexpected faces here?

"Beautiful, isn't she?"

The words, though unexpected, were so quiet and gentle, they surprisingly didn't startle me. I didn't even tear my eyes from the tiny, sleeping form in my arms. I could feel the tiny vibrations in her chest, where her little spark hummed gently, and somehow, I just knew it was a femme, without his even needing to tell me. It was something about her face.

Her protoform was bright silver, a sharp contrast to my own when I first changed. She fit perfectly into my hands, and I couldn't get over how right she felt there. Her little hand was curled around the edge of my chest plates, and she breathed evenly, her little Bumblebee-like antennae lying flat against her head. And the kicker was that she had two little wings on her back, making her resemble a little metal fairy.

"Her designation, translated into English, would be 'Sunfire', and she is the last sparkling online."

"The last...?" Finally glancing up, I met the smaller Prime, and frowned. "Who _are_ you, anyways?" He seemed confused by my random question. "I saw the other Primes, the ones Sam talked to in the second movie, but you're not like them. I mean, you're human size."

He nodded, a look of realization crossing his features. "I am, in fact, the First Prime. Chosen by Primus himself. My size was a testament to the fact that, and I believe there is a human saying for this, size did not dictacte true strength."

"'Size doesn't matter'." I nodded a little. "Is that why Optimus is smaller than his brother? Uh, both of them?" I vaguely wondered about Magnus. Would he be making an appearance, as well?

The Prime nodded, smirking a little. "All Primes are smaller than their siblings. My legacy, after I left. Optimus is a great descendant of mine. It isn't the size of their bodies that matters, but the strength and compassion held within their sparks."

I nodded again, feeling oddly humbled by those words. I'd never met the other Primes, more than once. I didn't know them well enough to say anything about them, but _Optimus_, on the other hand, I did know, fairly well. "He makes an excellent Prime."

"He does." It wasn't a question.

"What about his mate?" I frowned at the Prime. "If he's such a great leader, doesn't that earn him enough leeway to have a _little_ happiness in his life?"

"Do you not think the bots and yourself give him happiness?"

"Wrong brand of happiness." I deadpanned, blinking as the First Prime actually began to laugh.

"Yes, I do believe I understand that quite well. Who is to say what the future holds?" There was a gleam to his optics. "But we aren't here to speak of Optimus Prime."

"Why are 'we' here?" I admittedly pouted at him. "Everytime I come here, something big, and usually painful, happens." He chuckled again, and my pout deepened, causing him to shake his head in amusement.

"Everytime you come here, necessary things happen. Do you not wish to know about the only living sparkling, who cannot yet speak for herself?" When I paused, he nodded his head at the tiny sleeping bot in my hold. His face sobered. "She is the last, the sole survivor of the war. Her creators were offlined, and she will require new ones."

"Why wasn't she in the second movie?"

He shrugged. "Perhaps because the Autobot sensors weren't calibrated to pick up her smaller size, and weaker energy signal?" He must have caught the look I was shooting him, because he chuckled again. "We had to..._temporarily_ heighten your senses for you to pick up on her approaching signal, or as I'm sure you're aware, she would have landed in your ocean."

"You manipulated me?" I felt a combination of violation and relief course through me, and my pout turned into a real frown.

"Once. I assure you, it was necessary to save the sparkling."

"You could have just _told_ me she was coming!"

"Would you not have hesitated? Your human way of thinking second guessing her for a 'regular meteor'?"

I frowned, tightening my hold over the tiny sparkling as I glanced down at her. I hated that he brought it up, because he was all too right. That's exactly what I was doing. Second guessing. If it hadn't been for that 'other force' leading me, I would have stopped, and she wouldn't be here right now.

"I assure you, it will not happen again. She is the last sparkling. It was merely a precaution we took to save her." The First Prime stepped forward, placing a hand out and gently brushing it over her relaxed head, trailing his claw-like fingers over her antennae. "Is it not worth it, to have saved her life?"

"Once." I repeated his word, darkly. I couldn't, no, I _wouldn't_ excuse him for what he did, even if he was right in doing it. "I don't like feeling like a puppet, being manipulated." I was more than annoyed, at that very moment.

He nodded, once again looking amused. "Then perhaps it's time to wake up and meet the new sparkling in person, yes?"

I suddenly felt a jolt. My eyes shut of their own accord, and I felt like I was falling, but I wasn't afraid, oddly enough. I felt like I was suddenly coming back to myself, and I jolted again, my eyes shooting open.

* * *

**(Medical Bay)**

"You know, I should really redecorate this place. Make it more homey." I rolled my optics at Ratchet, who had his back to me, and then grinned a little when he jumped and spun at the sound of my voice. "Considering this is where I seem to be spending the majority of my time."

"Bella! You're online, finally." He moved closer. "I would ask how you are feeling, but..."

"There's a reason I'm not moving." I deadpanned quietly, feeling the dull throbbing ache up my one arm, which I couldn't really feel beyond the wrist. Let's not even get into the burn running through my legs. "And no offence, but it's not my enjoyment of the company."

He raised an optic ridge, but nodded. "Yes, I've managed to seal and repair the broken energon lines in your wrist, but the port has been greatly damaged. You will feel discomfort in that limb for several Earth weeks. I've numbed the area the best I could, however. As for your legs, the salt content in the water shorted some of the circuitry. You will have to remain here a little longer, but you should be free to leave the med bay before the day is over. Unfortunately, that will also hurt a great deal. I've repaired what I could, however."

I nodded at him, before really taking note of the tiny, light weight and warmth on my chest plates. I glanced down to see the sparkling sleeping in my hold. _She's really real. Well, duh. But still..._

"Her energy signal was very weak due to a lack of energon within her system. I've given her more, which should boost her strength, but how did you know she was coming to Earth? None of us sensed her, and we were specifically looking for _any_ unidentified signatures."

"The Primes." I glanced up at Ratchet. "Or rather, the one I've been talking to, more than the others. He looked like Sam at first, but now he's just, well...the smallest Prime I've ever seen." I thought about his words and smiled. "He called himself the 'First Prime' and said he boosted my sensors temporarily so I could help her." The idea still irked me, but faced with the choice of letting them tamper with my head, or letting an innocent sparkling die, I knew that, given the choice, I would have asked for them to tamper with my head.

If he was the least bit shocked or put out by my claiming to have met the 'First Prime', he sure as pit didn't show it. "I see. Did he say anything else about her?" Ratchet seemed to take it all in stride, but I noticed his optics were dimmer, unfocused, and figured he was relaying the message to the others. I would have paid good money to have seen Optimus' face at my claiming to have met the 'First Prime'. He'd probably have a spark-attack.

I didn't even question how he knew she was a 'she'. He was a medic after all. "You're not giving me crap for getting hurt? Again?"

He vented softly, optics narrowing at me. "I'm not _pleased_ about it, but I do understand what was at stake." His optics went to the femme sparkling, focusing. Ever so gently, he reached out and touched the tip of a large finger to her tiny arm, which was stretched up the center of my chest plates, where they met. "I know what would have happened, had you not done what you did. For that reason alone, I see no reason to add insults to your injuries." He added dryly, giving me a look. "And no changing the subject."

I giggled quietly, groaning in pain as it disturbed my arm. The sparkling, no... _Sunfire_ shifted ever so slightly, and curled up with a wordless coo. The sound melted my heart. "Wow. Um, well, she's... He told me her name was 'Sunfire' in human terms."

Ratchet made a series of odd clicks and whistles with a nod. I guessed he was stating her name in Cybertronian terms, and hell if I could remember that, let alone pronounce it.

"And she's apparently the last living sparkling."

He stiffened, his optics widening. "Wh-Oh Primus!"

"What?" I stiffened as well, looking up at him. "Ratchet?" He didn't answer. All he did was stare in horror and _such_ pain at the little sparkling in my arms. The longer he stared at her, the more worried I got. "Ratchet?" He didn't answer, and I very nearly smacked him, before realizing the arm I was considering smacking him with was my bad arm, and it wasn't worth the pain. Instead, I felt my eyes narrow. "Hey, Peppermint! I'm talking to you!"

He blinked then, shaking his head, and frowning. "Peppermint?"

Startled, I tried not to laugh. "Oh sweet Primus! You don't answer to your name, but you answer to Peppermint?" I shook my head. "_What's_ wrong?"

"I... It's just... We'd heard rumors. The sparklings were supposedly all offlined during the war." He sank against the berth, leaning heavily on his arms. "We'd gathered as many sparklings and younglings as we could into a storage area, heavily fortifying it to protect them, and leaving the majority of our guards there. For...many millenia, they were safe. New sparklings were brought in all the time, the eldest were trained in the military forces, or helped to escape from Cybertron if they wished no part in the war."

I kept silent, trying to imagine it with my limited information about Cybertron.

"Then one day, no one knows what happened... The entire complex blew. There was no warning, no sign of 'foul play' as you humans call it. No enemy troops were spotted, or detected in any way. The whole thing just went up, taking all the sparklings and younglings, and a good portion of our troops with it."

"Oh no." I looked to Sunfire, suddenly getting just _how_ important she was. She was a chance for a future. The next generation. All that was pure and good, that the Autobots fought to protect.

"The blow was crippling to our entire army. Even those not at the scene. When they heard about the story; it always changed. Some bots stated a Decepticon targeted it with a bomb. Others say it was a 'suicidal', I believe the term is, youngling. We never knew for sure what had happened, or if any of the offspring had survived."

"Until now."

He looked at me, his optics bright. "Until now." His voice had turned raw. "You truly are a gift, Isabella. You have brought happiness to bots, when we began to wonder if it was even possible to experience it anymore. You have won over former enemies, united us, and even brought to us the last living sparkling." He shook his head, optics locking once more on Sunfire.

I shook my head, frowning, my optics burning. "No. I'm the vessel, maybe, but it wasn't _me_ that did all that. It's Primus who gave the Decepticons the spark to _care_. It was the First Prime who brought me here, tampered with my sensors. It was them."

"Don't be modest, femme."

I jumped at the sound of the voice, and hissed sharply, clamping my lip plates shut as a burning agony rippled up my arm. I was vaguely aware of Ratchet cursing, and a pair of crimson optics entering my vision. Everything kind of spun a moment, as I fought the urge to scream, but it was the tiny whimper in my arms that had my mind clearing.

"Damn it, Barricade!" I grumbled, shakily raising my good hand. I breathed heavily, the pain clouding everything, and placed my hand on her head, feeling the low antennae as they wiggled at my touch. "It's okay, sweetspark." Another term that seemed to come naturally, with my obsession with the fandom. "Uncle Barricade's just a major pain in the, uh, backside." My optics shot up to him. "One of these days, I'm gonna attach bells to your neck."

I suddenly had a mental image of Barricade with a rather dry look, and a large cowbell around his neck, and snorted at the 'clang, clang' it'd make with every step. _Oh Primus! I gotta do that, one day!_ I actually curled up in pain from laughing so hard at the image, and even Ratchet looked amused. Poor Barricade, however, only looked annoyed.

He raised an optic ridge and looked down at the femme. "Sunfire, huh? It suits the femme." Very slightly, I watched his look soften. "I've never seen such a small sparkling. She must be rather young."

"I'd guess so. I won't know more until I've managed to scan her more thoroughly, however, I can neither force Bella's hands off her, nor can I remove the sparkling from under her hands." Ratchet vented, glaring at Barricade with a suddenly hostile look. "What are you doing here?"

Apparently the bots still hadn't warmed up to the Decepticons.

"Prime's given the four of us limited access to the base." Barricade snorted and smirked at the outraged sound that escaped Ratchet's vocalizer, before a spot on his chest moved aside, and Frenzy scrambled up, perching on his shoulder plates.

I kind of froze at his words. _I thought no one trusted them. Why would Prime give them access to the base. _Any_ access for that matter?_ Looking up at the bot, I was hit with a mental flash, seeing him run towards me. _Was it because he helped me?_

Suddenly, Barricade's smirk faded, and he turned to Frenzy, optics narrowing. "Repeat the report verbally for those _not_ currently sharing our internal communications." He ordered sternly.

Frenzy chittered almost nervously. "F-Frenzy pick up f-f-faint signal from S-Soundwave. S-Soundwave on approach to E-E-Earth. E-Estimated arrival time: T-T-Three months." His optics landed on me, before falling to the sparkling. "S-Sparkling? F-Frenzy never see s-sparkling before." He leaned forward, and almost absently, Barricade reached up, protecting the mech from falling by placing his claw in the way.

I didn't miss the action, and raised an eyebrow at Barricade, who only raised one back. We stared each other down for a long moment, before a small click caught our attention, and we both turned our attention to the sparkling in my arms. I forgot about pretty much everything around me, when my optics landed on hers.

She was _so_ beautiful!

* * *

**Written** : Sept 23, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	55. Creators

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Sorry about the late update guys. Things have been...hectic this weekend. First we had Easter weekend, then my grandmother had to go in for emergency surgery on an aneurism on her kidney. The surgery went far better than anyone expected, but she's still in the ICU so I was out visiting her today, and kinda...distracted yesterday. .

Anyways, thanks for the reviews guys. It helps a lot, and encourages me to keep writing. :)

* * *

**(?)**

His optics darted around as he floated through the stars. Planets passed by, many registering different levels of life, but none with sentient life that could think beyond the most basic instincts. He picked up faint trails of Cybertronian energy signatures, and even smaller bits of debris registering as Cybertronian. Either bits of the planet that had lost themselves in space, or remains of offlined bots.

He vented quietly, his only outward sign of emotion. This war tired him out. Many decent bots lost their lives, and for what? The true reason for the war was lost to most so long ago. Only Prime and his brother really knew. Prime never spoke of it, and Megatron liked to stretch and manipulate the truth.

He double checked his sensor grid and his travelling speed, rerouting excess energy to move just a little bit faster. Within him, smaller bots whined their boredom with the flight, and spoke among themselves about the battle, and their concern about their allies. Next, he checked his internal communications, leaving them actively open just long enough to transmit his estimated arrival time to the one bot he trusted above all else, before closing the line, and checking his other internal systems.

_"I don't really want to put up with that annoying Seeker. Bah. Starscream." _There was a low growl.

_"None of us do, but he's Megatron's second in command."_

_"Only to keep an optic on the slagger! We all know no one trusts him."_

_"Regardless, he is one of us. We will keep our optics on him, but we are not to engage."_ The large mech vented and his optics narrowed as he passed through yet another solar system. Vaguely, he wondered about the one mech he'd created, who was already on the planet. Frenzy. What of the youngling? Battle reports he'd picked up in the intercepted message from Optimus Prime indicated he'd been offlined, but the link was still active. Perhaps Barricade had managed to reactivate him, or to retrieve him from the field, before his spark was able to be deactivated. _"Mission briefing: Make contact with Megatron from orbit. Remain in orbit until orders are received."_

All chatter died down as if his words were some sort of cue. He felt the bots stiffen at attention.

_"Mission acknowledged."_

_"Wait for orders."_

He nodded, turning his attention to the path before him. His optics picked up on several signatures, splitting up in different paths. As he flew on, he became aware of closer signatures, seeming like they were attempting to cloak themselves, or perhaps they were damaged. He immediately identified them as Autobots and paused, floating still in one area. It took him seconds to realize they were slowly drifting away, in the wrong direction and he raised an optic ridge.

They were enemies. They were Autobots. He was a Decepticon. He'd been ordered to hate them, take advantage of weaknesses, and offline them whenever he had a chance, but... He wasn't Starscream. He didn't take a perverse pleasure out of staring into the eyes of young mechs, before extinguishing the light of their sparks.

Narrowing his optics, he grunted slightly, quickly working to mask the Decepticon signature that would identify where it came from. He rerouted the intercepted message, and sent it out as it was, before starting on his way. If they had working communications, they would receive the message. If not, well, he didn't hide his signature, mask it the way they did. If they had a grudge against him, they'd follow him.

Let them face off and fight equally on this planet. It was a far more humane and reasonable solution to allowing them to wandering possibly for eternity, or until their energon reserves ran out and they offlined. They would fight. Fairly. Like true, honorable warriors.

And he would win.

Feeling his spark lighten the slightest bit, he grimaced a little, the only emotion he showed. Megatron would _not_ be happy with what he'd done.

...Good thing he was his own mech.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

I looked around me at all the bots, and a good portion of our closest allies and friends, all just standing in a large, loose circle. My legs and arm hurt, but luckily Ratchet had given me something to lessen the pain. Instead, it was like a dull throb and a constant, painful tingling in my legs. Almost everyone looked awkward, but for a specific few, and I smiled at them. I knew how they felt, and why they felt it.

"She's so sweet!"

"And tiny! I didn't know the bots could _get _so small!"

"We don't all start out as giants, you know."

"Wait, if she's just a baby, does that mean she's going to get bigger?"

"A _lot_."

"So why are we here?"

Everyone turned to Sam, who had his head tilted at the small sparkling, who was just a little bit smaller than Frenzy himself. Tiny to bot standards, not so much to human. He looked, well, quite frankly, overwhelmed, but there was a smile on his face as he watched her walking unsteadily around, looking at everything.

"We are here to see whom the sparkling feels the most comfortable with. Every bot here has volunteered to act as a guardian and caretaker to the small femme, in place of her own, and we are waiting to see whom she choses." Optimus crouched next to Bumblebee, eyeing him and the smaller twins a moment, before turning his optics to Sam. "Sunfire is rather young, and requires surrogate creators. It will be her to judge us."

"But how? She doesn't know any of you. I mean, it's not like she can sit down and have an indepth conversation with you." Sam made a face, and I grinned when he glanced at me briefly. "Is it?"

"No." I giggled slightly, crouching on Bumblebee's other side. I didn't miss Sunstreaker's presence, warm against my back when I was standing, and looming over me when I crouched. He stood between Bee and I, just behind us, and Sideswipe stood on my other side, stiff, like they were standing watch over me. "I don't really understand it myself." I glanced questioningly at Prime, since Ratchet was across the hangar with the four former 'Cons (and Ironhide, obviously), and no one wanted to be too loud and scare Sunfire.

"Energy signatures." Prime spoke quietly, his voice rumbling regardless. "We have an almost instinctual sensor within our bodies that can usually pick up on and identify nearby Cybertronian signatures. With a sparkling, she can... I believe the best human terms to put it in is... She has a sixth sense of sort. She can sense the gentler waves of energy femme sparks give off, and one will suit her. She will turn to it."

"What about her original creators?" I frowned a little. "I mean, does she know, understand they're not coming back?"

Venting heavily, Optimus actually sank down to one knee with a creak of ancient gears. "From what Ratchet's been able to ascertain, her processors hold no knowledge of their offlining, or of her life back on Cybertron." He frowned, his optics darkening, but not in anger. "Her earliest memory is awakening in Bella's arms."

"Won't that, well...make her chose me? Since I was the first face she's seen?" I bit my lip plates a little, feeling the conflict within my chest plates. My spark wanted her to chose me. She was sweet and beautiful, and I didn't know her, but I felt so _right_ holding her. But unfortunately, my head didn't want her decision to be tainted in any way. If she was better suited to another femme. One that knew what they were doing, for one.

"No. That will not effect her decision. She will be led by her spark, which will be attracted to the signals given off by the other sparks."

"The fact she hasn't run screaming with the Decepticons in the room must mean something." Sunstreaker put in snidely.

"Whoa." I blinked, before frowning and turning towards him, twisting awkwardly to meet his optics. "If most of us are here because we volunteered-" I said most, because I had a hard time believing certain bots actually _did_ volunteer. Wheelie, for one, seemed kind of young for the job. Same with Bumblebee, Skids and Mudflap. Sunfire was Frenzy's size, so that could have gotten awkward. I was admittedly shocked any of the 'Cons were here, but somehow I felt like I shouldn't have been surprised.

Though... I _was_ surprised Prime allowed them to be.

But _Sunstreaker_ and _Sideswipe_?

"Why are the two of you here? No offence, but from what I've read about you guys, you don't strike me as the nesting types."

"Nesting?"

I twisted a bit more to look at Sideswipe, before getting a kink in the neck, and sighing a little, turning the other way to face him. "Yeah. Settling down with a femme and a sparkling. Having a family."

"Shows just how little you know about us, femme."

I twisted again, turning to look at Sunstreaker. I wasn't sure if he was joking or not, but if this was really a _volunteer_ gig... Feeling a touch to my ankles, I glanced down, expecting Rika or Mikeala, the two human girls closest to us. Instead, I found myself meeting big blue optics. "S-Sunfire?" My spark lurched as she looked up at me, clicking softly. "I..." I frowned, feeling nervousness flow through me as she gazed at me. "I-I don't understand."

A low clicking from next to me had me turning as Sideswipe crouched down. The look in his optics was startlingly soft, and he smiled at the tiny femme as he held a hand out. His red armor glinted in the light of the hangar, and I caught the reflection of yellow behind me as it moved.

"She wants to be held. Sideswipe is explaining you cannot understand her."

"Wait, she can understand all that? She can _speak_? But I thought she was really young...?"

When I turned to look at him, he nodded. "Super advanced robotic beings, remember?"

"How could I _possibly_ forget?" I asked dryly, before turning around. I watched as Sunfire almost hesitantly approached Sideswipe, glancing back at me as if searching for something. I blinked, before lowering myself even more. "It's okay, sweetspark." I nodded a little, before reaching out. I took Sideswipe's hand, brushing my fingers over his, before squeezing slightly. "See?" I tried to ignore the pleasant jolt I felt, when he squeezed my fingers back, gently.

"Hey, lookie, Bells' holdin' Sides' hand!" There was a low snicker. "Bella an' Sideswipe, sittin' in a tree-" Then he paused. "Why woulds dey be sittin' in a tree to kiss?"

**CLANK!**

"Hey! Optimus, the Decepticon attacked me!" My head shot up, even as Sunfire jumped and spun at the shout. I was about to...well, either give Skids a piece of my mind, or straight out slap him upside the head, but luckily, Primus was on my side. Even as I looked, Ironhide reached out and slapped the little pain in my aft for me. "Hey! What is dis? Beat up Skids day?"

"Silence, slagger." Ratchet hissed darkly.

Barricade whistled slowly, giving the irate medic a look of barely impressed amusement, before shaking his head and murmuring about him making a good 'Con medic. Which of course, earned him a look that made even _him_ take a step back.

A low, sweet whine caught everyone's attention, and I immediately reached out, picking Sunfire up. I didn't think about what I was doing, even as I held her against my chest, my heart longing. I stroked her back with my one hand, holding her gently but firmly with the other, and I smiled as she cooed and began purring.

"She _purrs_?" Rika's voice sounded incredulous, and if her jaw got any closer to the ground, she'd be able to sweep the floor with her chin. "Awwwwww! She just keeps getting _sweeter_! I want one!"

I giggled, and so did several other humans and bots, but my eyes never left the tiny sparkling who only seemed to curl into my hold.

"Well, it seems the sparkling has chosen her femme creator."

"And dat means Sunny 'n Sides are gonna be her mech creators." Jazz put in with a confident smirk. "Considerin' how close dey are." I shot a glare at him, feeling my cooling fans switch on, and there was no missing the warning growl from Sunstreaker behind me, but Jazz just raised his hands and waved us off. "Nah, I meant dat you're protective ova da femme. So ya'll be protective ova da lil femme, too."

I mentally questioned if _that_ was what he really meant, but taking the hint for what it was, I turned and stood, facing Sunstreaker. His optics were fastened to Jazz, but I grabbed his hand, and his attention at the same time. I pulled his hand out, before gently placing Sunfire in his palm. I don't think even the denser bots could have missed just how he stiffened up, glaring at me, before his optics widened at the tiny sparkling in his palm.

There was a low snort, and I turned to see Sideswipe standing next to me. "Better hope she doesn't lubricate herself in your palm, Sunny."

If it was even possible, his optics widened even more, with a look of undiluted horror. He bared his dental plates at us, optics narrowing, and hissed slightly. "Get her out of my hand, then." He quietly growled.

"Be careful." I smirked at him. "If you scare her, she might _just_ pee herself in your hand." I grinned at him, as the growling seemed to stutter to a stop, and his optics widened again. "Then again, you like to be 'threatening', so maybe you just need to glare at her to scare her." Then I frowned, tilting my head. "But you wouldn't do that to a sweet little sparkling, would you?"

His look at me was just _deadly_, but he vented sharply, before his look softened at the sparkling in his hold. She gazed up at him with the widest optics, but I couldn't tell if she was scared or not. I didn't miss how deadly quiet it got, as they just stared at each other. Then she cooed. It didn't seem possible, but his look softened even more, into a look I never thought I'd _see_ on the face of _the_ Sunstreaker.

He stared at her for a long time, closing his fingers to better support her as she curled in his palm. He tilted his head, regarding her with the greatest fascination, before slowly and haltingly bringing her closer to his chest. He raised his other hand, cupping her to his chest with a strange vulnerability about his features.

I don't know if anyone was breathing, but I wasn't. I couldn't risk _anything_ destroying that perfect moment between the two of them. As soon as he realized he was showing any sort of vulnerability, I knew it would disappear behind his walls again. This sight was surprisingly beautiful, and I would have given anything to keep some sort of image of it forever. Unfortunately, I didn't have a camera. And no, I didn't think a memory file was good enough. Nor did I know how to take one of those mental still images.

Fortunately, I apparently wasn't the only one who wanted to keep some sort of image of it.

Hearing a quiet click, I turned to find Sideswipe smirking slightly, an almost oddly content look in his optics as he gazed at his brother.

However, the sound seemed to snap Sunstreaker out of his trance, because he looked up sharply, and all 'vulnerability' seemed to fade, leaving him the good old Sunny we all knew and loved. Then something hit me, and I giggled a little. "Awww, that's so adorable!" I reached out and stroked my fingers over Sunfire's head as Sunstreaker held her, her little antennae waving as she purred. "The two little Sunny's hanging out together."

"Hah, Sunny 'n Sunny! Dat's cute!"

Bots began to chuckle, but the sound seemed less than I expected. When I turned to glance, the femmes were missing, along with most of the Autobots, including most of the younger ones, and the former 'Cons were gone as well. Only Jazz, Optimus, Ratchet and Bumblebee were left, along with the Lennox's, the Witwicky's and Mikeala.

"Frag off, slagger!"

I felt my jaw drop, and spun on Sunstreaker, even as my eyes narrowed. "_Excuse_ me? You did _not_ just curse in front of the sparkling..." My engine rumbled angrily, and I watched his optics widen. "Sunstreaker..."

"Oh slag, you're in trouble." Sideswipe made a show of stepping safely out of arms reach, _after_ grabbing Sunfire from his brother, cradling her to his chest, and smirking. "I'm just gonna...leave you to her anger. I believe the humans have a saying for this..."

I growled darkly, taking a step closer to Sunstreaker. I couldn't believe he'd actually curse in front of a sparkling! I was annoyed, and I was _so_ tempted to hit him! And of course, Sideswipe was on that list for his little slip up too, even if he didn't realize it _just_ yet.

"'Hell hath no fury like a femme scorned'." Jazz piped in quietly.

Growling again, I stepped forward again, and I didn't miss how Sunstreaker's optics adopted a wary look as they flashed to me. "You cursed in front of a sparkling." He opened his mouth, and my optics narrowed. "I don't _care_ about the whole super advanced robot thing! She took to _me_! _I'm_ supposed to be her new...femme creator-" Suddenly it all sank in, and I deflated as my eyes widened and my heart hummed hotly in my chest, panic hitting me like a ton of bricks. "Oh dear God, she sees _me_ as her creator? I don't know anything about taking care of a sparkling!"

Volunteering for it all seemed easy enough, before. Maybe it was because a part of me didn't honestly think she'd _chose_ me. But now that she _had_... What did I do?

I breathed heavily, the entire room spinning as I began imagining countless scenarios of trying to take care of her, and failing. Suddenly, I spun on Optimus. "It's wrong! I can't! I-I-I don't know anything about raising _Cybertronian_ sparklings! How do I even _feed_ them? Or raise one?" Then another thought hit me. "_Do_ I even need to feed her? No, wait, stupid question." I shook my head, before slapping a hand over my face a moment, as I struggled to think.

Surprisingly, the comforting didn't come from his sympathetic optics. It came in the form of a gentle embrace, and a tiny sparkling who was gently pressed against my chest plates, over my spark. She curled against me immediately, and my hands came up to her without really thinking about it. I was scared, but I couldn't resist the joy and contentment I felt when I held her.

Maybe it was because I was a woman, no matter what species.

The embrace helped a lot, too. It was Sides. I could tell from his red armored arms, and the warm, odd tingling of his chest against my back. That, in itself, was odd. If I wasn't experiencing 'spark call' then what was that tingling and heat? And why did I only feel it with them?

"It's okay, Bella. We're here with you. We'll all help you." He hugged me close, the embrace soothing.

"Yes. We will all be happy to help you, Bella." Optimus nodded, optics shining brightly. "You have nothing to fear."

I sighed and shook my head. "Except the long lectures and the wrath of Dr. Minty."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Even with their volunteering help, I still know Ratchet is going to be a big part of this. I have to talk to him, probably undergo some sort of 'data transfer' and then have to spend God only knows how long to figure out all the information and how to impliment it. It would take time. Time, energy and probably a _hell_ of a lot of stress. I am admittedly half tempted to spend my time locked away in the medical bay._

_After all, who among the bots is stupid enough to annoy Ratchet?_

_Well...more than usual, anyways._

_Before I can even plan, Ratchet is entering, ordering the twins to set up a third berth in their quarters for me... A third berth...in their quarters...for me... Wait, _what_?_

_I'm not even allowed to say a word. He's almost dragging me out of the hangar and towards the medical bay, prattling on about data packets for sparkling raising, as well as including packets for basic Cybertronian and a little bit of self-defence, and Cybertronian 'mechanics'. He's explaining what to expect, how the information is going to appear, and how to process it._

_My only saving grace is that Sunstreaker blatantly ignored Ratchet's orders and followed us, taking Sunfire before I was laid out on the medical berth before... Well, overloading my processor once more._

_It wasn't a true kiss. Remember, Cybertronians don't have _that _kind of flexibility in their lips, but he presses his lips plates to mine. His mouth is open, and he presses his face just hard enough to mine to catch the very tip of my bottom lip plate between his own. A ghostly touch of a sweet, chaste, kiss and serves to effectively distract me from Ratchet for a moment. Then I feel Sunfire squirming against my chest plates, right over my spark, and look down to see her gently lifted away._

_Maybe Jazz was right. _

_I might be her femme creator now, by her choice, but did she really understand who her mech creators might just turn out to be, through association?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Sept 25, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	56. The Next Prank

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Do you know the basis of a damn good prank?_

_The key... The key is generally to find someone whose either generally _really_ annoying, or a real big piss off on a daily basis. Someone who annoys you beyond the normal. Someone who can sometimes make you _so_ mad, all you wanna do it put their lights out. Or end them. Or do something that will make them forever fear you._

_Sometimes, the worse they annoy or anger you, the better the muse for revenge._

_Which would probably be why the girls -the human girls and the Cybertronian femmes combined- were mostly too afraid to help me. Maggie was there, along with Mikeala and Rika. Epps and Will wanted no part of it, and Sarah was actually off spending alone time with Annabelle. Judy just apparently 'knew better' than to assist us, and Ron just didn't want any part of it. Sam was too busy planning for college..._

_The bots, on the other hand, were in the same boat as most of the humans._

_Ironhide and Optimus were gone to Asia, checking out reports of possible Cybertronian presences, with a few of the NEST troops. The Chevy twins were making rounds in Tranquility. Jazz and Bumblebee had taken it upon themselves to keep up security on the island, and Sunstreaker and Sideswipe were assigned to another mission, this one down in the tropics._

_They weren't too happy to leave, either, but I insisted. I didn't want them to stop their lives just because of me, after all._

_Sunny wasn't please. BOY, wasn't he pissed! But faced with the choice of remaining with me or going with his twin, it wasn't a surprise he chose the latter._

_That left the forme Decepticons, who were still under limited access restrictions, and _everyone's_ watchful eyes and optics._

_And don't get me wrong, just because there were very few Autobots left on the island -only Jazz, Bee and Ratchet, really- didn't mean they weren't under watch. The humans had taken to walking around armed, Will and Epps taking up positions next to large guns armed with sabot rounds._

_But...if you really think _that's_ going to stop me, all things considered, think again. It's been _way_ too long since I pulled a prank last._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(A Few Weeks Later)**

It had taken me a few weeks to adjust to the information download, and the constant busy life on base, with a new sparkling. Luckily, Ratchet was there to help me. He constantly annoyed me, almost shouting orders at me, whenever I let myself get lost in the streams of data. By the time the week was up, I wanted to fry Ratchet's spark over a campfire. On the upside, I felt a little more independant now. I could speak about a handful of words in Cybertronian, and I knew how to form blasters with my hands.

On the downside, Ratchet wanted to see me at least once daily for more information. If it all settled well, he swore to me he was going to give me more data packets.

_Please, sir. No more._ I thought with a mental whimper, my head already hurting at the thought. I felt shifting inside me, and the new information kicked into gear, almost instinctively willing aside my chest plates to let Sunfire out. _Never. Gonna. Get used to that._ "Hey, cutie." I smiled down at her, my plan never wavering. "Wanna help me make Uncle Peppermint really mad?" I grinned as her antennae wavered and her little door wings fluttered slightly.

She, too, was settling down nicely. She was still awkward around Sideswipe and Sunstreaker, but she was a lot more comfortable with them, then any other bot or human alike. She cooed at me, happily, and I couldn't help my smile growing. The more time I spent around her, the more I began to get used to the idea of having a sparkling around. That's not to say I didn't make mistakes.. Like when I asked if they bottle fed sparklings. Wow, was my face red with the 'are you really _that_ stupid?' looks Sunstreaker sent me, coupled with the 'Primus, give me strength' optic roll Ratchet sent my way.

"We just need to pick up a few supplies, and ask Barricade and Frenzy for a little...help." Then I paused, frowning. _They're still on rocky ground with the bots. It's probably best if I don't ask for _their_ help to sedate Ratchet for a prank. They can help me get the necessary things, though._ Then I grinned. _But Bumblebee and Jazz are both viable assistants._

I left my new quarters, glancing back at the three berths. They were all arrranged along the wall, only a few feet between them. Barely even enough room for me, as a smaller femme, to stand between them. I found that odd, but didn't comment.

_The first few nights were awkward. They seemed about as uncomfortable having me there, as I was to be there. Maybe it was because I was a femme. Or maybe it was because I'm me. Sideswipe gave me a hug, looking almost a little nervous about the act. I guess he didn't mind having me around. Sunstreaker grouched a lot for him, though, so that's okay. _

The hug caught me off guard the most, but even as I stared at the berth, my mind was accosted by a new mental image, and I smiled softly, my heart warming.

**Flashback**

I'd recharged like a sparkling, as most bots would probably say. I had no 'dreams' or visions or nothing. I slept soundly, and I awoke refreshed. _Then_ I remembered my new quarters. It wasn't easy to forget, either, considering the room I looked like didn't so much resemble a room as an endless sunset. Whenever I looked around, I couldn't tell where the ceiling ended, and the walls began, the painting was so realistic.

The only thing that kept me from feeling like I was going to fall off the face of the Earth staring at it, was the endless forests, tinted in the bright oranges, violets and reds. There was a lake, a waterfall, birds flying across the sky. Even the ground was painted to look like a sandy path through the forest.

Beautiful, flawless, and unequalled work.

Sunstreaker's work, obviously.

I rolled over, sighing, trying to shake the feeling of vertigo it gave me, and my eyes landed on the figure of Sunstreaker, recharging on his side, facing me. The only light in the room was what I guessed was a remarkably advanced computer system that automatically lit up the room whenever the first bot in the room onlined. Since bots apparently didn't generally move in their sleep, I guessed it was some sort of motion detector.

However, that wasn't really what was on my mind.

As I rolled over, I blinked. For a moment, I didn't process what I was seeing. I did a double-take, and lifted my head a little as all my senses seemed to snap into alertness. Then, I smiled.

_Awwwww!_ I bit my lip plate hard, trying not to make a sound. I stared at Sunstreaker, laying on his side, and only a quick cursory glance told me Sideswipe was the same on my other side, again facing me. _If I was a paranoid girl, I might make something of that._ My heart leapt a little, and I smiled through my lip plate biting. For the first time in what felt like forever, I actually began to think...maybe things will be alright after all.

Sunstreaker's optics were offline, but I knew that wouldn't last much longer. His one arm was draped over his chest, but it was also draped over a _much_ smaller figure, who was curled in against a shallow indent to his armor, sleeping just as peacefully as he was. I wondered if he was aware of what he was doing, or if it was subconscious. Either way, I took in the peace and contentment of the scene.

Then his optics onlined, and I met them.

For a moment, we just stared at each other. I'm not sure what expression he was seeing on my face, but he didn't move. His optics didn't harden, and he didn't speak a word. He just stared back at me for what felt like a really long time. Then...he looked down, his optics settling on the tiny bundle in his grasp.

**End Flashback**

With a soft sigh, I turned and left the room, making my way down the hall, glancing down at Sunfire. "You're spoiled already, aren't you?" She looked up at me, tilting her hear a little. "You've been here for only a few weeks, and you haven't recharged in your own berth. You're always being held by someone." Myself. Sunstreaker. Sideswipe. Hell, I'd found her in _Barricade's_ claws once.

That memory made me laugh.

_He looked _so_ terrified about holding her, but seeing how she relaxed in his hold, he relaxed too. He actually gave off a tiny smile. Even Frenzy, sitting on 'Cade's shoulder, looked almost oddly content to have her there. Of course, as soon as they found out about it, Sideswipe had to tackle Sunstreaker to keep him from attacking the former 'Con. Which of course led to a fight between them, and Sunstreaker nearly demanding I repaint his armor._

"I still haven't gotten around to it." I put in smugly, tickling at Sunfire a little as I exited through the main hangar, blinking at the sun, before looking around. The first bot I caught sight of was Jazz, and I smirked evilly to myself as I wandered over. "Oh _Jaaaazzzzzyyyyyyyy_!"

Funny how quickly the humans seemed to warm up to the bots, including me, once we'd been forced to live together for some time. I was now only enduring the rarest of looks or comments, and more out of annoyance than anything. From someone I got in the way of, or bumped into on a bad day. Otherwise, they kept to themselves, or seemed to have warmed up to us.

I wondered how long that would last.

Not at all a surprise, Rika was on his shoulder, and she snorted on a laugh at my sing-song call, before glancing over her shoulder. I couldn't help but laugh, myself, as I approached them, even as Jazz gave me a wary look. "Told you, you'd like my nickname." She grinned at me, and I returned the look.

"Oh, Primus, not ya too." He groaned, shaking his head. "Dat ain't a mechly name Ri-Ri!" She giggled and shrugged, patting his shoulder, and he sighed, shaking his head yet again. "What'cha need, pretty lil femme?"

I felt my cooling fans switch on, and ducked my head a little. "Don't do that." I muttered, rolling my eyes.

"Yeah, you don't wanna do that. Sunny and Sides might not like you hitting on their femme." Rika's taunting tone had me shooting her a dirty look. "Oh, relax. I'm just teasing. So what're you up to? Pull that prank yet?"

I shook my head again. "Not yet. I need help. I need...someone to help me sedate Ratchet for the repainting."

"Uh-uh." Jazz shook his head immedately. "No way, I ain't gettin' involved."

"Please?" I held Sunfire up in front of me, and as if she understood what I wanted, she shot him her big blue optics and a tiny coo.

He looked down at her and blinked, going rigid. Then he groaned and shook his head, sagging in on himself as Rika began to laugh hysterically. "Primus. She's a lethal weapon!" He grimaced. "'Kay, you distact 'im an' I'll sedate 'im." He vented deeply, before reaching up and grabbing Rika gently, lowering her to the ground. "Ya'll are not gonna wanna be around fer dis." He vented again, and straightened, beginning his way towards the medical bay.

I put Sunfire down on the ground with a grin and winked at Rika who immediately went over and gently took her hand. That was another thing I couldn't get over. Sunfire was fascinated by humans, but after Sideswipe had sat down with her and spoken to her, she was really careful around them. It was really amazing how much she could understand, even if she couldn't actually speak English just yet. "Now stay here with Auntie Rika. I'll be back in a little bit." I stroked her antennae getting a purr, and a giggle from Rika, before standing up. Then I turned and went after Jazz.

I caught up with him quickly enough and we entered the medical bay side by side. When Ratchet turned to us, he looked wary, but he walked over regardless.

"So, what's wrong?" He looked to me. "Are your legs or wrist bothering you?"

I held up my wrist and looked down at it before shaking my head. My wrist ached a little, but with everything going on, it had become hardly more than an annoyance. There were still times when I needed to come in and see him for something for the pain, when it got bad, but this wasn't one of those times. Thankfully. His drugs usually knocked me out. "No. They're fine." Then I paused, thinking quickly as Jazz settled against the wall. "Uhm, actually... I was wondering about..." I tried to think of a valid question, and it hit me. The question was out, before I even processed what I was asking. "You told me about spark calling, but why is it I _always_ feel a tingle from Sideswipe or Sunstreaker when they're near me?" Jazz choked on a laugh, and I slapped a hand over my mouth, realizing what I'd just asked _might_ be more...private.

Ratchet glanced at Jazz, who looked for all the world like he was struggling to control himself. "I understand humans can be quite picky about whom they speak to about intimate subjects such as that." Oops. "Do you wish for him to be here?"

"I..." _No, not really._ But I needed him here for the prank. "It's okay." I shrugged. "So what's it mean?" I felt like I was going to implode from embarrassment, but this _was_ normal for Cybertronians, right? I mean, they all had it...right?

He eyed Jazz warily, but turned back to me when the silver saboteur began aimlessly meandering around the room. "Well, it's usually an effect that speaks to your spark having chosen it's partner. Or in this case, partner_s_. You have grown to care for the twins a great deal, so it stands to reason your spark has chosen them for mates."

"Wait, but...it's chosen _both_ of them?" I caught it as Jazz worked his way around behind Ratchet, but it didn't really set in. Neither did the fact he'd just told me I'd 'chosen' the twins. I was a little more stuck on- "As in Sunstreaker _and_ Sideswipe? BOTH mechs?"

"Well, yes. They are two halves of the same spark. Though in two bodies, I believe humans would call them the 'ying' and 'yang' of one mech." Ratchet tilted his head. He seemed to pause, and Jazz froze, immediately turning to a table behind him and pretending to look at the tools when Ratchet glanced over at him, before turning back to me. "I believe the simplest way to tell you how it works would be to say it's the way it's always been with twins. They share a femme mate, as a femme mate shares them. I can give you the details and specifics but that would take a rather large data packet, and at least a week of time to adjust to-" There was a noise, and he jerked. With a hiss, he spun, but even as he did so, his legs shook.

When he collapsed, Jazz caught him, and grinned at me. "All done. Perfect choice in question, Bells." He snickered a little. "Lil private tho."

I frowned at him. "Shut up." The cooling fans had yet to switch off, and actually turned up a notch at his words.

With another laugh, he laid Ratchet out on the ground and tilted his head. "Dis gonna work on 'is real body?"

"Uh, would'a worked better on his alternate form." I pursed my lips a little, before shaking my head and grinning. "But this is good."

Together, we set him up on the ground, and I quickly went to a nearby storage shed, where I had several cans of paint and other items set aside. Consider it a sort of 'prank supply' room of my own. I grabbed what I needed, caught sight of Barricade and smirked as I gestured for him to follow me. Dead End and Blackout were at the far end of the base, but only cast one glance at us, before apparently deeming it not important to get involved.

Jazz merely smirked, before taking his cue to go chase after my new sparkling, and I waved at the tiny, clearly curious figure, before disappearing into the medical bay. Thankfully, _he_, at least, trusted Barricade. A little.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Have you ever heard the saying 'curiosity killed the cat'? Well, apparently Barricade hasn't. He, and subsequently Frenzy by association, followed me without a word. When they spotted Doc bot down on the ground, they stared, dumbfounded. When I explained my plan, there was only a second of hesitation on 'Cade's part, before he quickly began helping me, a rather evil smirk on his face._

_Even Frenzy got in on the action. The little bot helped with the pink, fuzzy boas, as 'Cade and I repainted the bot. Then, to top it all off, Barricade decided to take things a step further, pulling a panel off the side of Ratchet's throat. I watched him worried, until he narrowed his optics at me and told me what he was doing. Then I couldn't wipe the grin off my face if I tried!_

_Of course, the end product was so damn twisted, I thought I was going to offline myself laughing._

_And, of course, the finished product didn't enter into play until the other bots all returned, and the sedative wore off. Then I ran like hell at the screech, screaming in laughter. Turns out Barricade had messed with Ratchet's vocals as well as his holographic projector. To match the new pink paint job and the pink fuzzy boas, Barricade had given Ratchet the vocals of a femme, and when he activated his holographic form, gone was the usual, good-looking medic._

_In it's place was a tall, blonde, bikini-clad woman, like something off the pages of a magazine. Despite the glare and nasty attitude, the human men were all suddenly paying very close attention to every word she said. Or rather, they paid close attention to the way her ample bussom heaved with half her wild gestures. It took a laughing Ironhide, and Sideswipe's holding my laughing form close before Ratchet calmed enough._

_Was it bad that was only ten times more hilarious?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Sept 27, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	57. Botnapped

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Sorry for the late update, guys. I tried to update yesterday, but I guess Fanfiction went down on me again. -_-' *Bad mental images*

Anywho, thank you everyone who wished my grandmother well. It's actually amazing, she's doing 'miraculous'. Even our family, and the doctors and everyone are amazed. She had an aneurism on her kidney, and it had started to leak, so she had to go in for emergency surgery to have it removed, and not only did she survive... Not only did she keep the use of her kidney, but she was out of the hospital in a week! You go, Grandma! :D

And here's the next chapter for everyone.

Also, a side note: When we get to my last completed chapter, the updates might slow down a little. I'm still writing on the story, but the muse sometimes takes a while to hit me. Luckily, I should only have a few chapters left. :D Meanwhile, I'm working on tons of crossover ideas. XD Supernatural/Vampire Diaries, Vampire Diaries/Real World OC, Supernatural/Power Rangers, Smallville/Inuyasha. XD LOL

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Monotony. It had it's uses, but damn if it wasn't, well, monotonous. It took Ratchet a week to get someone to help him change his holoform and vocals back. I tell you, he's never had so many patients! And I'm talking the human kind! God! Jazz, 'Cade and I are _still_ laughing about it! _

_An apple a day keeps the doctor away, huh? Apparently a babe in a bikini...ain't quite so healthy._

_And on the other hand...helping me with the prank seems to have warmed 'Cade up to me, and Sideswipe to 'Cade. But only a _little_ on the latter part. Sunstreaker ripped into me for a while about that, and seemed to watch me even more carefully._

_Can you say 'paranoid mech'?_

_Anyways, after another week of 'adapting' and living semi-peacefully, I was getting antsy. I asked for permission to leave, with the excuse of making a side trip to check my computer and see if anything new had come in, about updates. I doubted it, I mean, in the real world -Yeah, right- you didn't get updates _that_ quickly. It had only been what, a month and a half? The movie wasn't due out until like June of 2011. There was still way too much time before hand. Still, the excuse worked._

_Prime stated that since things had been quiet, and the last time I went home nothing really went _wrong_, that sure I could go home. He was even nice enough to return the keys Sideswipe had thought to pick up, that I left at home._

_Wow, don't I feel like a grade A ass?_

_And once again, Sideswipe -who was now almost as good as new- and Sunstreaker were going with me. Only this time, it would be _just_ the three of us, and they'd be teaching me to drive. Considering one of Ratchet's 'data packets' held tips and information on that, they might be in for a bit of a surprise._

_Still, I can't _wait_!_

_-Bella_

* * *

**(A Few Weeks Later)**

"Okay, the humans have a countdown, don't they?" Sideswipe's voice came from my left.

I was nearly shaking on my axels, staring at the scene before me. I heard their words and knew exactly what they were talking about, but it barely phased me as I stared before me, mentally going over what I knew.

"You have access to the worldwide web. Google it." Sunstreaker was on my right.

Rolling my eyes, I expected that answer from Sunstreaker.

"I'd rather google that smoking hot alternate form Bella's chosen."

I felt my cooling fans switch on and smirked, though it was hidden in my alternate form. I sat idling in between the twins, all three of us in our alternate modes, staring down an almost impossibly long, straight stretch of abandoned highway, and my heart was humming rapidly, hotly in anticipation. This would be my first real time driving, and I'd picked up a bunch of tips through data packets Ratchet had fed me. Of course, the twins didn't know anything about it.

"Now Bella, to control which way you're going-"

"Ready?" I let my excitement leak into my voice as I cut Sideswipe off, and grinned to myself when he seemed to stutter to a stop.

"Well, yes, but you should know-"

"Get set!" I struggled not to giggle, even as my heart lurched with excitement and nervousness mixed. I couldn't help but shimmy a little in my spot, my engine revving loudly. I couldn't even put into words just _how_ excited I was to be doing this, and I wiggled again on my axels, my tires twisting and turning a little as I squirmed on the spot.

"Primus femme!" Sunstreaker's groan had me freezing as a new feeling of heat rushed through me. "We'd be ready to go if you didn't wiggle your aft like that!"

Sideswipe snorted a little. "Hmm, I concur!"

I paused a moment, those damn cooling fans switching up higher, before a delicious feeling of evilness rolled over me. And no, not 'crazy-ass Fallen evilness'. Just...'I'm gonna get those bots going' evilness. I lowered on my axels, like crouching low to the ground, and let my excitement encourage a particularly delicious wiggle out of me. Hearing _both_ mechs groaning, I busted up into giggles and pushed myself forward.

"Bella, wait!"

I zoomed off, my internal speedometer telling me how fast I was going. Instantly, I found my mind being pulled in multiple different directions, as different parts of me began focusing on different things. I didn't bother with a holographic form, because my new processor was fully occupied with speed, direction, sensors on making sure nothing and no one was nearing me enough to hit me, and at the same time listening to the roars of the equally as powerful engines as they raced up behind me.

"Slow the frag down!"

They caught up easily enough. I wasn't going _that_ fast, considering this was my first time, but at the speed I was going, I could understand their own love of it. There was something exhilarating with zooming along, faster than most cars, the wind blowing against your fenders.

"What the slag? I thought you've never driven before!"

I giggled and squealed into a 360, gasping as everything spun and my sensors went blank. I slammed on the brakes, and skidded to a stop just a little off from facing back the way I came, and transformed up swaying a little as everything spun. "Holy crap! I'm dizzy!" I giggled hysterically, swaying back and forth, only to be grabbed up in a firm grip. Grinning up at Sideswipe, I raised an optic ridge. _Is it me, or does he like to touch me a lot? _I giggled again, my mind nose-diving into the gutter.

"Holy-I-" He blinked and shook his head. "Let me guess, Ratchet." The last part was stated dryly, with an 'I should have known' tone.

I nodded, then groaned, letting my head fall against his chest plates. "Oh, Primus! Spinning like that was a baaaad idea!" I curled up in his embrace, laughing, and instead of letting me go, once I stabilized, he pulled me more towards him.

"Uh, Bella? Can... Can I talk to you about something?"

There was a hiss, and I glanced over to see Sunstreaker going rigid and turning away. "What?" I quickly sobered, realizing something was up. Neither twin was laughing, or seemed amused, right now, which instantly raised alarms. If they didn't enjoy racing, something _had_ to be up. I looked up, relieved to only see one set of optics focusing on me, rather than the double set he had moments ago. "What? Did I do something wrong?"

"Oh frag, Bella. Do you _always_ think you did something wrong?" Sunstreaker spun towards us, glaring. Then he vented heavily and walked over, leaning against Sideswipe and closer to me. "It's not...that." He seemed awkward, glancing at Sideswipe and actually leaning against him further, as if seeking strength from his twin's presence. "I... I am not good at this." He hissed, and turned away, with only a glare at Sideswipe. "Only _you_ would bring this up _now_, of all times. It's too slaggin' soon! Even by human standards!"

"Yeah, maybe, but she's not human, anymore." I turned to find Sideswipe frowning, seeming nervous. "And what would you have me do? Wait countless human years? I'm not the one who, as the human say, got the ball rolling." He raised an optic ridge. "Who has initiated intimate acts with her?"

I felt the heat soar through me, the fans remaining steady to keep me cooled. That had sounded _so_ wrong.

"Who has more or less already spit out his feelings for her?"

My eyes widened. I had a feeling what they were talking about, and I was both excited and terrified to hear about it. I mean, there could have been any number ways _that_ could go, and my mind spun, trying to cover them all. Then I automatically denied it, telling myself I was being paranoid. That I was making something of nothing. I mean, after all, they could have been talking about anything.

Then I second guessed it. _Just like the Ferrari. You thought you were making something of nothing with the Ferrari, and look how that turned out._ I lowered my eyes to Sideswipe's gleaming red chest plates, the color _still_ throwing me off from the silver Corvette I'd gotten used to the idea of. _What if I'm wrong? What if I'm not wrong? Is it too soon? How long as it been?_ I'd admittedly lost track of time, I'd been so busy trying to adapt.

Sunstreaker spun on him, his glare darkening. "You're pushing it _too far_! You want her to make a decision!"

I felt my eyes widen again. _Decision? Didn't Ratchet say they came as a package deal? What decision? Oh Primuse, don't tell me they want me to chose! _I could easily admit to caring deeply for both twins, because in my eyes-optics-whatever, they were two halves of a whole. If that made any sense.

He growled, then hissed. "Don't you think _now_ is a bad time, especially considering the sparkling, and the arrival of the, ugh-" He made a face. "_Former_ Decepticons?" Sunny actually looked like he was going to be sick, just mentioning them.

"_I'm_ following my spark. Whose to say that if we don't, some other mech won't come and claim her?"

"I wouldn't _allow_ it." Sunstreaker's glare darkened more than anything I'd ever seen, and his engine gunned loudly, threateningly.

I liked the thrill of the possessive tone he'd taken, even if I _didn't_ like the fact they'd apparently forgotten I was there. "Hello!" I pushed against Sidewipe's chest, and the way his head shot down to me confirmed my thoughts that apparently he and Sunstreaker _had_ forgotten I was even there. Despite me being held tightly in his grip. "I'm _right_ here! What're you two even talking about?" They didn't have a chance to even answer, before all three of us stiffened simultaneously. I still had my sensors to max, feeling out our surroundings, and I felt an odd ping on them. Then I felt two more, and I clenched my jaw. "We're not...expecting company...are we?"

"Oh, Primus, femme! How is it you always attract the wrong kind of attention?"

I shot Sunstreaker a look and pulled out of Sideswipe's arms. "Are you calling _your_ attention the '_wrong'_ kind?" I met his glare with one of my own and watched as he spluttered. "So what, they're Decepticons? Should we run?"

"You should. We'll distract them." Sideswipe subspaced his blades and growled, wheeling forward.

"Wait, what? I'm not leaving you!"

"Go, Bella!" Sunstreaker matched his brother's stance. "We've already contacted the base for backup, but they won't make it time." He glanced back at me. "We can hold them off and dodge most of their attacks-"

"Seekers have worse aim than you'd expect."

With a smirk, Sunny glanced over at Sides before turning to me. "But they'll target you. Now _go_!"

I swallowed heavily, staring at him as he firmly turned his back on me. I looked at both of the twins, their backs to me, and spaced apart with their swords drawn, and mentally checked the three incoming signals. _I have to have faith in them._ I frowned, my spark humming in terror. "Please...be careful." I admittedly whimpered, before turning, transforming and taking off as fast as I could, struggling to focus. I could have been embarrassed; the twins were the type to give me crap for sounding weak, but I was more focused about not distracting them.

Still, it felt like my spark was in my throat as I sped off the highway, hitting a busier street and squealing back and forth through traffic. I was completely aware when the three spots stopped moving, right over where my sensors picked up on two other signals. _Please...Primus, watch over them._ I hit another street, and gasped sharply as a silver Audi seemed to appear out of nowhere.

Sideways flew at me from a side street, and I barely had time to shriek in surprise, before the clash of metal on metal, and a blinding pain. I was barely aware of spinning, and slamming into something else. My vision spun, and I gasped as my world seemed to fade in and out. Blinking out of my pain, I gasped sharply, feeling something grab on to me.

My optics flared open, and my sensors flared to full in a split second. I made out Sideways' holographic form closing in, something shining in his hand, that he seemed to try and hide. Alarms blared in my mind, and immediately, I readjusted myself. I squealed back, hissing when I nearly hit a bus -deja vu, anyone?- and turned forward, nearly running over his holographic form as I sped by him.

Everything hurt like hell. My body felt like I'd just been...hit...by a car... And no, no pun intended. I didn't even hesitate, or try to swerve around him, he merely jumped out of the way. Unfortunately, I felt something sharp jabbing into a spot between my front door and the seam to the frame. I couldn't identify it, I just drove like hell, speeding through the city.

_Oh slag! Oh slag! Oh pit-damned-slag!_ Why didn't I go for the internal communications? I hit a side street and headed for the edge of town. The last thing I wanted to do was lead Sideways to the docks the bots used, or their base.

Then, the dizziness hit.

Even as I sped down the highway, I cried out as my vision spun, the pain flaring up, and sidled sideways into another car, mentally apologizing and having to literally bite my tongue to keep from doing the same verbally. Something flashed red in my vision, as I sped off the road. I wasn't aiming for a mountain range, I wasn't aiming for anything. I was just driving away from the road as fast as possible, sliding one way or another as my dizziness got worse.

My sensors suddenly seemed to flicker, and it hit me then I couldn't pinpoint the group of spots signalling the twins and the Seekers. I frantically tried to find them, but nearly ran into a rather spiny cactus.

Gasping sharply, I tried to breathe steadily, but it felt like my body was shutting down. With a sudden burst of near desperation, I transformed up into my robotic form. I didn't think about nearby humans or possible witnesses. I only thought of one thing...

If I was in robotic form, and the Decepticons wanted to hide as badly as the Autobots... They couldn't take me with them if I passed out. If I couldn't transform, they were stuck with an unresponsive bot, out in the middle of the desert.

...Right?

I staggered, everything spinning around me until my legs gave out and I landed painfully on the ground. My only thought, as everything went black, was a prayor. As I fell to the ground, smelling the dusty sand, I prayed for the twins and Sunfire to be okay.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

_"Sideways to Starscream, we got her. Intel confirmed."_

Starscream's optics flashed, and a near downright evil smirk crossed his facial plates as he stared out over the stars. _"Good. I expected it that way. It seems he's redeemed himself for his...moment of...stupidity."_ He turned and stalked back into the large mountain, chuckling deeply. _"Status on the twins."_

_"They've managed to escape, as soon as they realized the ruse."_ Thundercracker reported immediately. _"Skywarp and Thrust managed to get a few hits in, but they realized that Sideways was after the femme and pulled some crazy stunts to get away."_ There was a growl.

_"Sideways managed to sedate the femme, and has her body under guard just outside the city."_ Starscream's optics darted over the report playing across his processor, and he smirked. _The femme is more attractive than ever. "Join him and retrieve her before the Autobots can."_ He turned back and glanced out the entrance once more, staring at he stars.

His smirk faded then, and his optics flashed brightly. _Soundwave's arrival is both a blessing and a curse. He can hack the femme's processors. For now, I'll settle for being happy breaking her._ His smirk was back, but it barely lasted. _Then I'll have to think up some other plan. Undoubtedly he'll want to come up with some way to revive Megatron, which will take away my power. I can't allow it._ He growled, stalking further into the mountain. _I'll have to either deal with Soundwave, or come up with a way to offline Megatron after he's managed to deal the killing blow to Optimus Prime._

* * *

**(Base)**

"Slaggit! How'd we not _see_ it? We should have gone with her!" Sunstreaker snarled darkly enough that most of the humans found reasons to vacate the immediate premisis, and the ones that didn't were almost dragged off by others. The only one left was Rika, and pretty much the only reason she was left behind, was because she was pissed enough to almost make Sunstreaker look like a harmless kitten.

"You _lost_ her? How the hell do you lose a grown femme? Why didn't you teach her to protect herself?"

"Because the datapacket containing all the information she'd need would overwhelm her processors, at this point in time." Ratchet's look was dark, as he glanced over to Sideswipe. "We'd have to have fed her the information slowly, bit by bit, and she's made it clear we were to wait some time before attempting that."

"No kidding, Peppermint. You know, you look more like Hubba Bubba than a giant tic-tac. Still can't get the pink out?" Rika raised an eyebrow, but her eyes gave away how little amusement she was feeling. "Are you telling me she _just_ disappeared?"

Optimus rolled into the base and transformed up, frowning as he too glanced to the preoccupied Sideswipe, before turning to the others. "Reports have come in. There was a car crash in town, moments after Bella separated from the twins. The cars involved were a red Porsche and a silver Audi." His optics narrowed as the twins immediately snapped to attention.

"Sideways!"

"Slaggit!"

"Sunny!"

"Don't call me that!"

The little whine silenced the bickering twins, and Sideswipe immediately pulled Sunfire closer to his chest plates, holding her carefully. "It's okay sweetspark. We'll find Bella."

Sunstreaker vented and walked over, leaning against Sideswipe as he brushed a hand over Sunfire's antennae, and down her back, causing her little wings to wiggle. He stared at her a moment, before almost hesitantly taking her from Sideswipe's hands, pulling her to his own chest plates. "Yes. We'll find her." His optics darted to the others and hardened.

"And Primus help whoever harms her."

* * *

**Written** : Sept 30, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	58. Ultimatums

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : A special thank you to **UNYSEDIRATA** for telling me about a Transformers Thriller video on Youtube! It's definitely good! For those that haven't seen it yet, go check it out! Just type in 'Transformers Thriller' in the Youtube search engine and have a ball!

...And I thought I ruined Baby Got Back for myself. -_-'

And a great big THANK YOU to everyone who got us over 1,000 reviews so far! You guys are amazing, and I'm glad you like the story so far! :D

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

_"Can't you-" _

_"She's not going to stop, just because you want recharge."_

_"I never said I wanted recharge."_

_"What? Can't handle the reminder of how we failed? You do know what he's going to do to her, right?"_

A low, menacing growl sounded, and the little wails of the sparkling only increased in desperation and volume. The red form holding her glowered at the yellow form across the room, and snarled darkly, which only made things worse. His snarl cut off as quick as it started, but his rigid set didn't. That didn't help a whole lot. He stared down at the tiny sparkling in his hands, really taking in just how _small_ and _fragile_ she was, and vented roughly after a moment.

It didn't take long for his twin to do the same and join him, stroking her back with shaking hands. _"We're not cut out for this. I don't think we even have the programming for...sparklings, and...families."_

_"She's changed us. She makes it...worth it. We need to get her back."_

_"Can we get to her in time? We're relying on _humans_ to help find her."_ There was a growl, and abruptly, Sunstreaker was stalking across the room, almost slamming his hands into the wall, which made Sunfire jump and shriek in terror.

The unexpected result of which had their door nearly blowing off it's hinges as a large black and white mech stalked in snarling, his crimson optics flaring. Before either twin could even think to arm their weapons, he was removing the sparkling from Sideswipe's grasp and holding her close, letting out a loose, rough growling purr. His glare did all the snarling for them, as he seemed to struggle to soothe the sparkling.

It was several long, tense moments, before either of the twins realized they _hadn't_ armed themselves, the moment they realized there was a Decepticon in front of them. Then they took in his grim expression.

_"If you two femmes are done bi-"_ He paused, glancing at the sparkling wailing in his hold, and grimaced. _"Complaining about Bella's absense, how about we _do_ something about it?"_ He growled lowly, turning it into a purr quickly, as Sunfire stiffened. _"We've just found out how it was the femme was targeted, and how the Decepticons knew you were there to begin with."_ He handed Sunfire up to Frenzy, who cuddled her close, before turning. _"Come on, you're gonna wanna see this."_

He turned and stalked out of the room, and the twins exchanged a wary glance, before following him, almost hesitantly at that. They headed down the long halls of the base, pausing only briefly when they realized soldiers were rushing to the main hangar with weapons loaded with sabot rounds. Ironhide snarled loudly as he rushed past, cannons armed, and Sunfire screamed again, causing Barricade to click and whistle at him dangerously.

'Hide barely paused long enough to shoot a distrustful look at Barricade, snap something back, before turning and running on.

They looked at each other again. _"Did 'Hide just-"_

_"I knew it!"_ Sunstreaker rushed forward, hot on the heels of Barricade. He ran into the hangar, intending to slice the 'Con in half and take the sparkling back before she could be harmed, but skidded to a stop at what he saw.

"In English, half wit!" Blackout nearly roared, pressing his massive foot down on a deep, cherry red chest. "Tell them everything!"

_"You don't order me around, traitor! I proved myself to master Starscream! That's all that matters!"_ Crimson optics sparkled like rubies, and the 'Con, the rather _beaten_ 'Con, on the ground smirked, despite obviously being in agony. _"You ran. You betrayed all we were raised for, for a _femme_! For an _enemy_!" _He chuckled, and choked painfully as Blackout pressed his foot down harder, and there was an ominous groaning of metal threatening to give way. _"Y-You'll never get to her in time! She was right about one thing, though..."_

Optimus approached Dead End, who was being firmly and brutally held down by a former ally. "You've betrayed us, Dead End. It was Ironhide who was suspicious of the attack. How they knew there would be only the three of you out there, isolated, and when to strike. It was Bumblebee who sensed the hidden beacon you had on you." Ratchet stepped forward, growling, but Optimus held his arm out, stopping the medic. "And we picked up on the morse code message you sent out for them." Optics narrowed. "Warning them the femme would only have limited protection this time. Your betrayal is unforgiveable. We gave you a chance to live relatively peacefully-"

Dead End's snort caused his voice to trail off, and everyone to step forward, threateningly. "Live relatively peacefully? Like I was saying, the femme was right about one thing..." He smirked, before hissing in pain as his chest plates cracked threateningly under the pressure of Blackout's foot. "The war will never leave any of us alone. It will follow us, take our sparks when we least expect it. You think you can trick us into behaving ourselves, but who tricked who?" He laughed brokenly.

"We took you in, and you used our hospitality. Why her? Why not the Arcee triplets? Or our human allies? Our shard of the Allspark?"

With a snort, Dead End smirked, his optics twinkling. "Because, despite what the femme has told you, the Fallen _will_ rise again. He will end you, Prime. He will destroy this pathetic planet, and he will reward those loyal to him."

Suddenly, he lunged up. He pulled on his strength, grabbing Blackout's foot padding and pushing him back so the large helicopter stumbled into the arms of Jetfire behind him. He quickly got to his feet, and raced forth, even as weapons were armed around him. Quick as lightning, he pulled a hidden dagger out and threw it with all his might at Optimus.

However, one bot saw what was happening, before all the others.

With a snarl of rage, a single figure darted forward, throwing one of his own blades, he came to a skidding stop in front of Optimus, and cried out in agony as the blade slipped effortlessly between his chest plates, burying itself in his inner workings, even as his own blade sank through the damaged armor on Dead End's chest plates, and into his spark, ending the Decepticon's existence.

As Optimus reached out, grabbing the figure as it fell, people and bots alike began to rush around, some screaming, others staring in shock. Only one cry was heard over the others.

_"SUNSTEAKER!"_

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

Gasping sharply, my eyes shot open. I had a horrible feeling, like something really bad was happening. Then I took in the rocky ceiling above me, and the groggy feeling filling my body, and groaned in horror, panic striking me fiercely. Yeah, something horrible was going on, alright. I tried to move, and felt the panic rocket through me when a rattling of chains and the restraining feeling made me realize I was stuck.

My breathing was shallow, as I tested the restraints. Tight. Too tight to pull out of, and a quick glance told me the chains were too thick to just pull apart with brute strength. A second glance around yielded a large chamber, decorated...with silks and satins, if the dim lighting wasn't messing with my vision.

"Ahh, you're finally online. So, do you like it?"

The pleasant tone made my breath catch and a shiver of horror and dread shoot through me. I couldn't bring myself to turn and look, because honestly, if I did, I might start screaming like a maniac. I was in _his_ hold again, and this time I had no one to turn to.

"I heard satins and silks were in high demand with organics. If you like, I'm certain I can send my Decepticons to acquire desireable amounts of gold, diamonds, and other jewels femmes are said to appreciate."

Swallowing thickly, the feeling of dread settled in my spark, but the fear seemed to turn to a loathing hatred. He was trying to seduce me. To _court_ me, and he had to know I'd never be interested, but like the raving lunatic he was... He. Kept. Trying. I turned to look at him, afraid and angry. I didn't say a word. I let whatever my face showed speak volumes.

And he clearly wasn't pleased.

His optics narrowed, and he snarled, stalking over. "The way I heard it, the twins didn't have to do much for you to fall all over them." My eyes widened, and he sneered at me. "Sources say you're interested in them both, but I'd like to think the two cockiest Auto-scum out there would think they could do better than you." His sneer turned into a smirk, and he leaned on the table, causing me to lean away to avoid us touching. "Or maybe it's the sparkling who closed the deal. Tell me, femme, have they even _asked_ you to sparkmate?"

I turned away when my optics began to burn threateningly. "From flirting to torture. Nice, you must have graduated 'How to woo a femme 101' with flying colors. What a casanova." I growled darkly.

"You never let me finish. _They_ can't possibly want you. They have many other options, and we both know they're not the settling type. I, however, am. I'm looking for a sparkmate, a 'family', and I want _you_ to be my sparkmate. Be my Queen."

I turned back to him, a roiling hatred and incredulousness filling me. "You're kidding, right?"

"You seem to think that. But... I will make you a deal. One you can't possibly refuse, if you are as smart as you seem to think you are." He lashed out then, his expression darkening as his hand wrapped around my throat.

As my air was cut of, the defiance seemed to flee in the face of near blinding panic. I realized I was dealing with a real psychopath here, who wouldn't hesitate to take what he wanted, by force if necessary. The worst part was he _had_ the force. Even as I choked, struggling to breathe, and writhing as red flashed in my vision, I could feel him tensing, squeezing tighter.

"Be my sparkmate by choice. I will have you, one way or the other. Soundwave has upped his estimated time of arrival to a few days, and if you haven't made up your mind by morning, I may be forced to take you by force. Then I will allow him to use his...abilities to seek out whatever information you know." He sneered, releasing me abruptly. "I will wait no longer. I _can_ make this incredibly pleasurable for you, femme. You'd want for nothing."

I coughed, breathing painfully, and shaking as my processors struggled and failed to think up an escape route. I narrowed my optics at him and growled. "Except for a real mech!" I snapped hoarsely, gasping and shrieking as he grabbed my throat again.

He snarled and squeezed, and my vision nearly went black from the pain. The red dominated by vision, clouding it, and I could feel something snapping and crackling under his grip. I fought the chains, struggling to breathe, and could feel my body slowly beginning to heat. Not from what you might think, though. Without the air cycling through my body, my cooling fans couldn't switch on, and my core body temperature was rising.

At least, that's what Ratchet had said, when I asked him why giant alien robots needed to breathe.

I struggled against the chains, pulling until I was only adding more pain than ever, and squealing brokenly as my head began to spin.

"You truly _are_ trouble. Make your decision wisely, Isabella. I can make your existance wonderful, or I can make you wish you were offline."

"I...a-already w...w-wish I was...offline." I rasped through his grip, causing him to squeeze tighter.

His optics flickered such a dark shade of red, they actually looked black, and for a moment, I thought he was actually going to offline me. He stared at me with such a loathing hatred. Even as I heard something behind him, he didn't blink, and my swimming head only seemed to get worse.

"Starscream! Stop!"

He jerked away from me, and I gasped painfully, shaking violently. He sneered down at me, and growled viciously. "If I want your opinion, Thundercracker, I'll ask for it." He hissed darkly. "Watch the femme. Make sure she doesn't do anything to further prove her stupidity. I'll be back for her in the morning." He snarled lowly, glowering at me. "Don't think you're special enough for me to not offline you. Your information will help us destroy the Autobots, and if you continue to make things difficult, I'll take what I want and easily send you to join them in the Matrix."

I glared right back, shaking. I wanted to explain to him that if I was offline, I couldn't be his 'Queen', but honestly? I prefered his way. Well, except the whole 'taking what he wanted' part. That I could do without.

I watched as he left, stomping out of the room, and locked eyes on a rather cheesed looking Thundercracker. "What's w-wrong Thundercrapper? P-P-Pissed you..." I coughed and shook my head. "Pissed...you got stuck with sp...sparkling-sitting?"

He smirked then, his optics flashing darkly. "I'd rather watch a femme that looks like _that_..." His optics raked my form in a way that made me shudder with disgust. "-than a sparkling." Then he growled. "But if you don't watch your tone, 'Screamer will make you _truly_ wish you were offline."

"Too late." I hissed darkly, pulling harshly on my bindings.

He sneered at me one more time before turning and leaving the room.

_And what part of 'watch the femme' translates to 'go and sit _outside_ the room, and leave the femme to her own things'?_ I raised an eyebrow, before coughing again. Most of the red had faded from my vision, but every time I shifted my neck at all, there was a near blinding pain that shot up it. I looked around the room, noting the small window. It was too high to reach in my human form, and too small for my robotic form, and there was still the issue of getting free...

Just how the hell would I get free?

Then a new worry crossed my mind, causing me to fight harder than ever.

Soundwave...

Would he be one we could trust? Like Frenzy? Barricade? Or would he be as eager as a monotonous bot like him could be, to torture me? Would he find and take the information? If he did, there was no doubt in my mind the Decepticons would happily and swiftly dominate over the Autobots, and I didn't want that to happen. If only there was a _way_ to forget everything I knew! I already told the Autobots all there was to tell, now if only I could just _forget_ it, so that even Soundwave couldn't pry the information from my head.

But...how?

We couldn't let the Decepticons win, but what could I do? It wasn't like I could ask a Decepticon to shoot me in the head. They were idiots, but they surprisingly weren't _that_ stupid afterall. They wouldn't dare injure me in any way that would effect the information I held, and I knew it.

So...what could I do? I was restrained. I couldn't get free. I was alone...

...Wasn't I?

Looking around, I took a deep breath. I stared out at the dark sky beyond the window, before closing my eyes and praying. Out loud. "First Prime, if you can hear me, please help me. They can't find out what I know. Please..." I had no guarantee it'd work. I mean, I'd never been able to control when he spoke to me. It was always when I was unconscious, and usually when he deemed it necessary. Still, what other choice did I have? Even if we were somehow in the same fortress as before, the Autobots were outnumbered, and this was home ground for the Decepticons.

Would they make it in time?

...Could I afford to take the risk?

"Please, Primus, if he can hear me, let him respond. Please, First Prime, talk to me. I need your help." My wrist began to burn. My bad wrist, but that doesn't mean I was going to give up. If I lost my hand, I was going to get free. I _had_ to stop them! "Please, help me. Make me forget. Protect them..." I whimpered, closing my eyes even tighter and breathing heavily as the panic truly set in. "Help me."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I was terrified. I was trapped, and had little to no time to come up with a plan, and my processor wasn't exactly cooperating. Let's not add to that the strange feeling like something was _wrong_, and I'm not talking being strapped to a table, in the hands of a psychotic robot, who planned on breaking me in more ways than one. I had a bad feeling._

_Didn't Starscream say something about 'intel'?_

_If Soundwave wasn't here yet, just who and what was he talking about? Was... Was there a traitor among the Autobots?_

_What if something happened? All because of me. I asked them to take the 'Cons in, and now they had a possible spy. Just like I originally planned. But who? If they had a spy, who was it? It couldn't be 'Cade. Not if he really saw me as a possible, adoptive 'sister'. Blackout, no matter what he did now, couldn't possibly expect to get back into 'Screamer's good graces after what he did... Could he? _

_Maybe...Frenzy?_

_But hadn't he taken to Sunfire?_

_Oh sweet Primus! If there was one thing I didn't need, it was another worry._

_Primus, save me._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Oct 2, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	59. Torture

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I'm SO sorry for the late update, guys! I was out of town all last week, and thus not on the internet for more than 2 minutes the entire time. Then I had my computer reformatted, and appointments to go to. -_-' Sorry!

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Careful what you wish for._

_I've heard that saying so many times, you'd think I'd take more stock in it. I know I should. We all should. We never know when a wish is going to come back to bite us in the ass, but do we ever listen? Do we ever consider it? No. Never. Not seriously, anyways._

_I wished for Autobots and Decepticons to be real. Whenever anything remotely out of the norm happened, I liked to imagine Cybertronians were responsible. The strange truck in my parking lot one night was an Autobot, watching over me. Or the unusual red 'Fire and Rescue' van sitting on the edge of the main highway out of town was Red Alert, or maybe First Aid. Hell, the jets I saw soaring in the sky once were Decepticons._

_I used to entertain countless ideas of what meeting Cybertronians would be like. I'd wish and wish that it was real, just because the idea of superheros was one so many people desired. I never gave much thought to the downside. I mean, if Autobots existed, so would Decepticons. So would Sector-7 and all the bad humans out there. Death and mayhem would be real. More real than ever._

_But I never paused to think about it._

_The same could be said for my most recent wish. I wanted all the bad to go away. I wanted the First Prime to give me answers, like he always seemed to do. To help me. To at least _hint_ at something that would help._

_I never... I never thought about the downside. I never thought twice about what I'd be losing, aside from the memories and information that the Decepticons could use against the Autobots. When I got my wish, to speak to the First Prime, I prayed for death to come on swift wings. I prayed for Primus to just strike me down and solve all my problems, and once again, that age old saying came to mind._

_-Bella_

* * *

"Be careful what you wish for." I murmured quietly, ignoring the quiet, odd peace of my surroundings. I could move here. I felt no pain, but that didn't mean my spark wasn't heavy. I felt like my entire body was made of lead, and I couldn't raise my optics to meet those of the single mech staring down at me. I was in my human form. The easiest way to speak with the First Prime, since I was uncomfortable towering over him.

"A human saying. Yes. I've gleamed it from the processors of more than one Cybertronian. Isabella, understand. I am _only_ here to help you in the most extreme of cases. You are...special. Because of your circumstances, coming to this universe, something about you is different from the other bots, allowing us to speak. It could be the shard of the Allspark still existing within your own spark. It could be the fact you were born human. The answer, only Primus himself knows, and not even _I'm_ privy to that information."

"There has to be _something_! I'm helpless! I can't let the Decepticons get the information!"

"Is that all? Or is it also the fact you know full well Starscream will take your innocence, and get you with spark, whether you agree or not? My taking your information will not help with that, and any influence I had in the physical world is currently diminished because of my tampering with your sensors. Which, by the way, I merely gave you use of my original sensors, briefly."

"It's drained you." I looked at him now, and could see the true concern in his optics.

He nodded gravely. "Yes."

"You can't help me."

His frown deepened. "I can, but I don't believe you want it. If I take away all the information they want, who you _were_, there will be nothing left. Your knowledge of the Cybertronians will be gone, completely. You won't know Optimus. Autobot from Decepticon." His optics flashed then. "Sunfire. Sunstreaker. Sideswipe. None of them. You won't know anything you do now, about the fandom. You won't know friend from foe. You will be unable to adapt to your life as a Cybertronian."

"What do I do then? Let them win?" I sat down hard, my heart humming hotly and heavily.

"You fight, and have faith. Primus isn't cruel. He wouldn't have brought you here, to give you only pain. I have faith you will escape. Stand by what you know, little femme." He crouched across from me, showing me kindness. "More than one bot's life rests on you keeping your knowledge, and fighting with everything you have. So fight, Isabella. Fight Starscream and the Decepticons and always remember you have a new family. They will not leave you to the Decepticons. They _will_ come for you."

"That's what I'm afraid of." I whispered softly, a single tear trailing down my cheek. I pictured Sunstreaker and Sideswipe in the lead, blasting their way through Decepticons, and Sunny got blasted, taken down, which took Sideswipe down as well. "That's...what I'm afraid of."

"Wake up!"

I jolted awake with a yelp of pain, as something gripped my arm sharply. My eyes shot open, and I wished I could just go back to sleep when I spotted the familiar crimson optics I was dreading seeing. I was no longer free, or at peace, or even with the kind Prime. No, I was back in my stylish cell with an irate looking giant Dorito of Doom leaning over me.

"Did you listen to a _word_ I said? Worthless femme! It's morning, and here you are in recharge!"

My heart lurched with hatred and fear, but my processor was spinning. My eyes darted past the irate Starscream, to the tiny window, and I stared in horror at the bright sun peeking through it. _Oh Primus!_ "I..."

"Did you make your decision, or did you spend your time in dreamland with your _other_ lovers?" He sneered. "Considering that's the only place they'd even _want_ you."

"That's not true!" I hissed darkly, trying not to grimace when the words shot past my lips faster than I could comprehend them.

"Did they tell you they cared?" He smirked now. "Did they charm you into believing they wanted you? Your, I believe the _human_-" He spat the word out with disgust. "-term is 'baggage'? I thought you knew them. You'd know then, that Sunstreaker isn't _capable_ of settling down with a single femme. Especially not one with a sparkling."

That grimace was impossible to ignore. What I hated most, was he was speaking all my worst fears, and I couldn't fight the nagging insecurities and doubt his words were planting. And even worse than that, my eyes were burning, and I knew he'd see the onset of tears and know he was getting to me.

I turned my face away, trying to hide my internal struggle. _He said he cared. He said the kiss wasn't an experiment. He held me, protected me. I heard him get _possessive_ over me._ My heart spoke those words to me, but my head was telling me a whole other story. _He's a player. He's just trying to charm me, and I'm letting it work!_

Fingers gripped my chin tightly, forcing my head over as I whimpered in pain. I met the smug optics. "He has two other femmes to chose from. Two unmated femmes, originally created Cybertronian. They'd know how to please their mechs. They'd know what their mechs wanted, when they lose control and speak in their native language. They'd know how to spark without conceiving." He smirked again, optics flashing. "Do you?"

"You treat me like this, and expect me to _chose_ to be your femme?" He opened his mouth and I narrowed my eyes. "And hanging stolen silks from the walls _doesn't_ count as 'courting'!" I was terrified, and I hurt. I wanted to deny his words, more than anything. In fact, my mind kept running over the countless times one twin or the other would hold me, or hug me, or protect me. Even Sunstreaker's kisses.

I mean, if it was just an experiment, he could have just as easily kissed Arcee or Flare-up, right?

"You are stubborn." His smirk turned into a glower, but it quickly flashed back again. "But I can prove what I say. You believe the twins care for you? Then why is it my spy spotted the red one, Sideswipe, 'kissing' another bot?" It was like he'd read my mind, and a wave of terror and dread ran over me. He tapped something on the side of his helmet, and a holographic image appeared, just like when Optimus showed Sam about Cybertron and Megatron.

Only the image I was seeing wasn't one of a war-torn and barren world, in it's dying throws, with Decepticons crawling through bodies, and around massive, gaping holes in the ground, where fires spewed up. Still, it wasn't any less heartbreaking.

_It can't be._ The betrayal was a sharp stab in my heart. I didn't know if they could fake images, but the thought of questioning it never really even crossed my mind. I was honestly ashamed to admit just how easy it was to believe what he was saying. What I was seeing. _No, it can't..._

Sideswipe was standing before me, in all his holographic glory. At his feet stood his holographic human form, and across from him stood Arcee and _her_ human holoform. She was really pretty, by the way, looking like a more deadly and perfect version of Mikeala, with the dark hair and bright blue eyes. They spoke to each other in clicks and whirls, that I couldn't understand, looking at each other curiously and surprisingly a little awkwardly.

But that's not what got me. What got me was that, after an extended conversation, Sideswipe licked his lips, leaned in, and pressed his lips to hers. It seemed...awkward, and they pulled apart, making faces. Then Arcee shook her head. Her look turned distant a moment, before she came back to the present, reached out, grabbed his face, and _really_ planted one on him.

He looked surprised at first, but quickly seemed to settle into the kiss. As it continued, the kiss got deeper, and more passionate. My heart shattered.

_Didn't Ratchet say they both tended to chose the same femme? That kiss was a lot more passionate than _anything_ Sunstreaker laid on me._ Swallowing back the bitterness and tears, I stared at the ceiling, as Starscream cut the holographic image off with a chuckle. _What if he's right? If Sideswipe was kissing Arcee... He's a lot more forward about that sort of thing. Maybe... Maybe Sunstreaker really _was_ just interested in experimenting and didn't want to admit it._

"I can see you are beginning to see reason. I will leave you to think on that. My earlier decision to force you immediately may have been rash, I admit. After all, it seems no one else really _wants_ you." Starscream sneered at me, before unhooking the restraints. "Your weapons have been deactivated, and you are helpless without them. Think on what I said." There was an odd glint in his optics, as he leaned down, trailing a single claw along my cheek with a surprising tenderness. "I am not always ruthless."

I swallowed again, doing everything in my power _not_ to recoil from his touch. I refused to meet his optics, or to glance over as he left the room.

_The First Prime said to have faith, but how can I do that after seeing _that_?_ I'd heard a few soldiers talking about seeing the 'red mech and pink femme' making out, but I never put much thought into it. I mean, for all I knew, they might have been sparring, and got into a compromising position, that the soldiers read too much into. Or maybe they were referring to Mudflap, who was mostly red. Or even Dead End, the all red bot. _But now I know... I just didn't..._want_ to believe it._

I was physically freed from the table, but I couldn't bring myself to move. I tried to fight Starscream's influence. I tried to reason that they really _did_ care about me, but try as I might, I couldn't fight the nagging questions and doubt. The seed had been planted, and was growing steadily.

_Sunstreaker's a player. Everyone knows that. Most of the fanfictions out there pegged him for the time to use 'em and dump 'em, not settle down with a family. Sideswipe _might_, but he liked to follow Sunny's lead. _I could only recall less than a handful of fanfictions about either twin settling down with a family, and even less that kept them in character, and made sense on all levels. Who was I to think they'd be different in real life?

Then, like a slap in the face, it hit me.

_They are exactly alike in appearance and mannerisms. Why would they be any different in this?_

Slowly, feeling numb, I sat up. A quick glance around told me I was alone, physically. There could have been cameras, but I didn't care to look. I didn't care. I let the threatening tears fall, feeling burning hot and cold at the same time. My spark sat heavy in my chest, the hurt stinging like someone had stabbed me, or had even reached in and was prying it apart, piece by piece. It hurt so badly, I wondered if maybe it had changed in appearance, in any way. I had to shake off the thought, before the mechanics of it threatened to derail my pain and thoughts.

_What if he did use me? What does that mean? Was Sideswipe in on it?_ I wanted to laugh, but not a laugh of joy. _He's his _twin_, for Christ sake! Of course he had to be in on it!_ I stood, stalking over to the wall, and turning my back to it, before leaning against it. _What about the others? Arcee said we femmes needed to 'stick together', so _she_ wouldn't do this... No..._ Even if my faith in the twins was shaken, badly at that, everything I knew about Arcee told me she was a sweet, straight forward, and loyal femme.

Then I paused, sinking painfully down the rough wall, not even caring how it probably scratched the hell out of my paint.

"I...don't know her that well."

I thought about Starscream, what he'd said. The betrayed part of me actually considered taking him up on his offer. For about two point five seconds. Then I snorted and rolled my eyes. _Even if every Autobot out there used and abused me, I'd rather make out with a regular car than even consider dealing with _him_!_ I curled up, the pain in my neck and wrist shooting through me and causing me to hiss and wince. _So now what...? I can't stay here. Screamer will make good on his promise. It's only by the grace of Primus himself that he hasn't already. I... I don't know if I can go back to the others. Not... Not right now, anyways. Not...when I can't bring myself to face _them_. _

Even if it was a game to him, Sunstreaker's made it a mission to concern himself with me. My health, more than anything.

Then my thoughts turned to another mech who seemed to have concerned himself with my well being, even to the point of putting himself into harms way to help me.

Barricade.

_He could help me. Help me answer my questions, and figure out what's happening, one way or the other. But...how do I get to him if I _don't_ go back? He's locked up on the base. He's not allowed off it. I'd have to go back to the base to see him, and if I did, I'd be forced to deal with _them_._

I felt my body tensing with frustration. Every time I tried to think in one direction, my mind cut me off, at a loss. I couldn't bring myself to go back and face Sunstreaker and Sideswipe, as long as the doubt ate at me, and that mental image of Sideswipe and Arcee was playing across my mind. Hell, even if I could get away from the 'Cons, I didn't _know_ my way back! Whenever I tried to think of how to escape, my mind came up short. Whenever I tried to think of a bot who could help me, I came up short.

I was trapped. I was being mentally tortured. I...was helpless. I had no ways out. None that I could see, anyways. Slowly, I began to rock, my mind running over everything. It didn't help I knew it was a matter of very _little_ time before Starscream gave up on the chivalrous nature and decided to force my hand. Or rather...force me, plain and simple.

I shuddered, terror rushing through me and causing my breath to hitch as my optics darted around.

I needed a way out, and I needed it now.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

"Ratchet! I got here as fast as I could!" Mikeala dashed away from Bumblebee and Sam without so much as a backward glance. They didn't seem bothered by it, though. Even as she ran up to the harried yellow medical bot, Sam stepped out of the whistling Camaro with a worried frown, and Bumblebee transformed, picking his charge up and holding him close, door wings and antennae hanging lowly. "How bad is it?"

"Bad! We need to go, now!" He picked her up like a barbie doll and quickly spun, pushing past the numerous bots milling around, and rushed into the building with her in his arms. "Slaggit! It missed his spark by only an inch, but severed several important cables! I managed to repair most of them, but a major cable is still freely leaking energon, and I can't stabilize him, or reach the cable to repair it!"

Optimus frowned, glancing over at Barricade, who held Sunfire curled to his chest plates, looking startlingly shaken and upset by the events. He stroked her back as she recharged in his claws, and Frenzy looked on with wide, spiralling optics. "It appears Bella was right again." They looked at the large Prime, even as Ironhide rushed around with weapons for the humans, as they piled into jeeps. "She predicted a danger to Sunstreaker's very life. I do not doubt that on some subconscious level, she knew this was a very real possibility." He glanced to the sky and shuttered his optics briefly. "Let us pray Primus is kind enough not to take him from her and Sideswipe." Then he glanced to the sparkling. "And of course, Sunfire."

"Hmmm..." Barricade's optics flashed, and he looked over at Frenzy, before glancing down at Rika and Maggie, both girls looking haggard. He bent slowly, eyeing them oddly, before hesitantly handing Sunfire down, nudging her slightly to wake her up. She crooned slightly, and the former 'Con tilted his head a little, optics softening at her, before she climbed out of his hand, and the humans gently took her inside. Then he straightened and his expression darkened into a glower that would make most 'Cons shake. "Are we going?"

Optimus looked over his shoulder and spotted Jetfire with his new silvery paint job, in C-17 mode. He spotted Ironhide standing there, waiting, and several of the bots in their vehicular alternate modes. "Yes. We are going. Let us hope we can catch them off guard."

"I still say we offline as many as possible." Barricade strolled past Prime, and towards the jet.

The great Autobot leader vented and shook his head. "I have no doubt many of my officers will do so, while on the mission." He kept it to himself, however, just how violently most of his troops wanted to offline the two remaining 'Cons on the island. He followed after the former Decepticon, glancing towards where Blackout sat in helicopter mode. He was still uncertain about the two of them. Dead End had somehow faked his thoughts, memory files, and tricked him. What if they were doing the same? But then, if that was the case, they could have offlined him already and ended this war in favor of the Decepticons. No, something told him Bella was right about Barricade, and Blackout had done nothing to betray them.

And only _his_ word was keeping his troops from attacking them.

He transformed after the now black and white cruiser, following it towards one of the three C-17s waiting.

_**"Mission Directive: Find and secure femme Isabella Cameron, and retreat. We are too few to take unnecessary risks. If you are engaged, protect yourselves, but do not act irrationally."**_

With varying replies from the other bots, Optimus backed onto Jetfire's alternate form, settling down with Barricade and the Chevy twins. Ironhide would take another C-17 with a portion of the human soldiers, and the Arcee triplets would take the other. Unfortunately, they would be without a field medic for this mission, as Sunstreaker was not doing well, and Ratchet needed to focus his attentions.

He could only pray everything turned out in their favor.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I didn't know what was worse. The threat of impending rape, or the nagging pain as Sideswipe and Arcee's kiss ran through my mind again and again. I knew the bots had to have a function to block that from happening, to help them move on from disturbing and agonizing mental images and memories, but hell if I knew how. All I knew was I hurt and I was scared, and I'd never felt more like a cornered, caged animal._

_My fear was being locked up with the Autobots, and/or experimented on by the human government. Thanks to Keller, the human government either lost interest with me, or had put all thoughts of me on a back burner. At least, that's how it seemed. My fear, however, seemed to be coming true. I was locked up with Starscream, and though he wouldn't experiment on me for the sake of knowledge, he'd be more than happy to force me into sparkmerging, maybe even sparkmating, for the sake of breeding an army._

_He could try and persuade me with promises of love and kindness, and all the riches in the world, but I could see right through him. There was only one thing he wanted, that he'd do anything to get. Power. And I had the key to that._

_The good news?_

_He had no idea just _what_ I was capable of. About my 'dreams', and my dream 'visitor'._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Oct 7, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	60. Soundwave

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Okay, really needs to STOP screwing around with the site layouts. Seriously. Piss off, because you're screwing me up. They did this with Facebook, and it killed any love I had for the site. -_-'

Anywho, aside from my bitch fit of the day...

Sorry about the late update! I was basically without internet all week/weekend, so... But I'm back now! :D Here's the next chapter! OH! And I got some writing done this past weekend. I finished the rather horribly anti-climactic final battle (and I sincerely apologize, but my muse for Transformers is...blowing in the wind. -_-') so just one more chapter and I'm done the story. Writing it, that is... There's still at least 30 chapters to be posted yet. -_-'

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Was it bad that, in all the confusion, I completely forgot about Sunfire? I mean, I knew she was safe, and that was really all that mattered, but with everything else, I never once thought about how she would feel if I left. And when I did think about it, it tore at me even more. I didn't want to leave her behind, but Starscream's words made me wonder and doubt if I was even capable of properly protecting her. _

_I couldn't even protect myself at this point, what good was I to her?_

_But...still... My brief plan of escaping the Decepticons and trying to start over somewhere else was completely trashed the instant I pictured her big, beautiful optics staring up at me. She'd chosen me. Despite the fact I'd be forced to deal with the twins, I had to be there for her._

_And then there was the fact that if I _did_ go back, I'd have to face them on a daily basis._

_I loathed the tiny part of me wondering if it would really be so bad to take Starscream up on his offer. He clearly had a softer side, one that was more like the sane, misunderstood Screamer some people wrote about. Then again, he could snap and kill me before I could blink, which would make trust an issue. I _knew_ he wanted me for sparklings, and sparklings only, but what would my life be like, if I chose him? Other than being a broodmare, would he treat me nicely? Care for me?_

_Why, again, was I even considering it? The moment I so much as looked at him wrong, he'd kill me._

_Not to mention, the heart wants what it wants, and my heart definitely does _not_ want _him_!_

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Two Days Later)**

Two days, and Screamer hadn't returned once. Two days of being forced to think, as much as I tried not to. Two days, and if I stayed in that God-forsaken room one more minute, I was going to literally dig my way out through those rocky walls, if I had to do it with my teeth! I was starting to get low on energon. The warnings appeared, and I pushed them aside.

For a moment, I hoped they'd forgotten about me, and would just let me starve to death.

Then the sound of a door opening squashed that thought, and filled me with terror and repulsion at the same time. I looked up, warily, ready to meet the optics of the mech undoubtedly planning to force himself on me. It felt like my heart stopped, at the idea of losing my innocence to a monster, but when I found myself facing a cup of energon instead, I could only stare dumbly.

"Drink. Starscream wants his future queen healthy."

I looked up into the dark glower of Thundercracker's optics and raised an eyebrow, feeling distant and hazy. "What? Pulled your head out of your aft long enough to remember you had a prisoner? Too bad." I sighed, reaching out and taking the cup. I could have fought, but knew it would only cause issues if I did, and wouldn't help any. Not that, that was a bad thing, but I didn't want to catch Starscream's attention once more, if I could help it. I drained the cup, and sighed again, before absently tossing it his way. "Thanks 'Crapper. You can go back to doing whatever dirty little things you were doing with your trine, now."

He looked startled, and a little disgusted, at my insinuation. Then his optics narrowed. "Why you-" He leaned forward, snarling, and even as I scooted back, suddenly alert, the door swished open and he straightened, sneering. "Starscream wants to see you."

I stiffened then and sneered, even as the energon churned in my tanks. I wanted to give out some snappy comeback, and a dozen of them were perched on the tip of my tongue, but before I could get a word out, he turned and stalked out of the room, and Starscream entered, with an all too familiar mech behind him.

I'd only seen him in brief appearances in the second movie, and then formed as satelite, not a land-dwelling creature with arms and legs, but it didn't matter. Either way I recognized Soundwave. If nothing else, the dark crimson visor across his optics were a dead give-a-way.

"Well, have you chosen? I'm tired of waiting. You either choose to enjoy this and be my mate willingly, or I will take you by force, once Soundwave as read your processor and ascertained not only your information, but if the Autobots have implanted you with any other defences we don't know about."

_They can do that?_ The idea of a mouse trap on my spark had me shaking my head, before I frowned up at him. I wouldn't say yes. As much as the idea nagged somewhere in the back of my mind, I _knew_ it was only because of the things he'd said, about no one else even wanting me. It had nothing to do with a desire to be with him. Still, I couldn't say no, either. To do so would anger him, and rush his actions, and force me to give myself over to forced merging. _I'm so screwed! Soon to be literally!_ My eyes filled with tears, and he grimaced with a sneer.

"I take that as a no then. Too bad. Soundwave, you will read her and report her information to me. I don't trust her data transfer port, and without Scalpel, I can't be certain they hadn't implimented more defences on her. Inform me of what you find." He turned and stalked out of the room, the door sliding shut behind him.

Soundwave was _massive_! Even bigger than Megatron himself! I cowered away from him as he towered over me, terrified. I didn't know what to make of him, but he was here. He was here with Starscream and the other 'Cons. When he stepped towards me without a flicker of emotion or hesitation, I jumped to my feet and bolted!

The door was shut, but surely it had to be unlocked, right? How else would he leave when he was done? I ran for it with everything I had, only to shriek with alarm as I found myself caught up in a veritable web of tentacles.

"Stop." It was a monotonous word, but an order none-the-less, and I struggled anyways. "Fighting will only incur pain. Remain still, femme." The tentacles slid around my wrists tightly, holding me in place, as even more came from places in his body I didn't even want to _think_ about.

Then the pain hit.

As the tentacles touched me, like electrical energy, and burrowed into my body, it was like I was being electrocuted, frozen and burned, all at once, and I _screamed_! My vision blacked out, and my heart immediately began to ache as I was held still and apparently probed.

Images flashed, unbidden, before my eyes, and I screamed again as immediatly, Optimus' death was targeted, drawn up. I was forced to relive his death, like I was there, unable to stop it, and I cried out as Megatron's blade slid through his chest. I was accosted with mental images of Jazz being torn apart, followed by his painful rebirth thanks to the Allspark shard the Primes had given me. I saw the First Prime, the death of the sisters, Mikeala's rumored death, Sam's death.

Things were getting foggy, but I remembered screaming and thrashing like there was no tomorrow. I fought the tentacles, but like he'd warned, the more I fought the more it hurt.

The last thing I remember, was a completely random, and beyond humiliating thought crossing my mind, that I just _knew_ he'd see.

_Wow, talk about taking tentacle hentai to a whole new level!_

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

Soundwave held the femme immobile. When he arrived on Earth, Starscream had initially ordered him to find and hack into the Autobots' human allies' most secure channels, to find any useful information, and he'd honestly tried, only to find their systems backed up with heavily incripted security codes. They'd clearly expected the intrusion, if the unusually tight security was any indication, and had prepared for it accordingly.

So his new orders were to read the femme's processors and find out what she knows. Imagine his utter shock to see what had happened in Mission City, like he'd actually been there. And then the next movie, which according to her processors, hadn't even come to pass yet.

The tentacle hentai caused him pause a moment, but he brushed the thought off as unimportant, before looking further. He watched Optimus die, in her mind, felt her pain at the thought. He watched several Autobots die, in fact, and her pain and thoughts on the matter. Even as she forced herself into offline status, with her struggles, he continued to read her.

_**"Frenzy, respond."**_ He ordered internally, frowning as he finished the information transfer in a matter of moments, and used his connection 'tentacles' to place her upon the single berth in the room. _**"Information verified. Status on the femme: Frightened but unharmed. Status on Starscream's intent with the femme: Force sparkmerging and breeding army."**_

_**"F-F-Frenzy receive information. Transferring to 'C-Cade now."**_

He looked down on the femme, treating her gently. He'd filled half of his orders, finding out everything she knew, but now couldn't bring himself to complete them. Especially not when unfamiliar crimson optics danced across his processor. The First Prime? Just who was this femme, to have met with _him_, when not even Megatron or Optimus Prime themselves have had that honor?

Surely, she had to be someone important. Perhaps she was the key needed, to finally end this war?

He tilted his head a little, spark humming uncomfortably. Starscream had informed him the Autobots had offlined Frenzy, but little did he know about the little bot's revival. Dead End's information had apparently seen his return to being online as unimportant and had left that out. As such, Soundwave had been able to communicate with his soldier, and learned what had transpired on the planet.

He was torn. His loyalty demanded he remain with the Decepticons, only for his logical head to get in the way. He was loyal to Megatron, not the Decepticons in general. He knew he couldn't trust Starscream, who had broached an idea about bringing Megatron back to life. He knew there had to be a catch. There always was, with that Seeker. This femme, on the other hand. She was more special than Starscream could comprehend.

_**"C-Can you get her out of the b-b-base? Optimus P-Prime doesn't want to engage full Decepticon force with minimal troops."**_

_**"Negative. Starscream will suspect and offline."**_

_**"Slag! U-U-Understood."**_

Staring down at the femme, Soundwave's frown deepened, and his optics flashed behind his visor. He made a decision, to be true to whom he was. Starscream was in charge. This war was doomed to drag on forever, and would continue to destroy planets until it ended. There would be no peace, no home; no love, family, or happiness, unless it ended now.

He looked at her chest, where an Autobot insignia, still looking new, sat.

Then, he began to plan.

* * *

**(Autobot Base, Normal POV)**

"Slaggit! Sideswipe, can you hear anything at all, from him?" Ratchet leaned over Sunstreaker's heavily restrained form, working wrist-deep in the chest cavity before him. Mikeala was deep inside Sunstreaker's body, wearing specially made protective gear as she welded another leak.

"No. Nothing." Sideswipe's voice was bleak, empty, distant. He was tired. So very tired. He was also worried, scared, and beyond angry. _**'Sunny? Please... Talk to me, brother.'**_

"Keep trying! Mikeala, sensors indicate another leak further in, can you-Frag!" He jumped as Sunstreaker's body convulsed, and a steady pulse issued forth from the machines he was hooked up to. "Get up here, now!" He grabbed her unceremoniously and dropped her on a nearby table, before working on the spark, which had faded dangerously.

Sideswipe lurched, optics glazing, and a pained, hollow sound coming from him. _**'Sunstreaker...'**_

_**'S-Sides...'**_ It was distant, just a ghostly feathering touch, but Sideswipe lurched to his feet unsteadily, suddenly alert. The touch had been a caress, as if sensing him, and taking comfort in his nearness and the fact he wasn't harmed. Then there was a new sense of alarm, however faint. _**'F-F-'**_ The feeling faded as Ratchet worked, before a flash of desperate longing and pain so sharp, his legs gave out, hit him, causing him to crash to the ground painfully. _**'Find her!'**_

"Sideswipe, you need to talk to him! Use your link! Slaggit, Sunstreaker! Don't you fragging dare give up, or I'll hunt down the Primes myself to revive you so I can offline you myself!"

"Contradictive, much?" Mikeala murmured, worriedly, as she watched from the table. "C'mon, Sunny... Don't give up..."

_**'Sunny?'**_

_**'F-Find Bella!'**_ The words were a whisper in his mind, so very faint, and came with a flash of longing, pain and fear. Whenever he spoke, Sideswipe was lost in a sea of darkness, but when he didn't, the red twin was so empty and hollow, he honestly didn't know which was worse. It was like Sunstreaker was trapped inside his own body, barely on the end of permanently offlining, and whenever he woke up, he dragged Sideswipe into the darkness with him, the confusion shaking both their processors.

The machine beeped, showing the slow cycling of the spark's energy cycles, and Sideswipe heaved a heavy sigh. _**'I can't leave you! I need you! Don't leave me, please! Fight it, Sunny!'**_ His thoughts were frantic, and he raised a hand over his spark, clutching his fingers to the ridges in his armor. _**'Ineedyou!Ineedyou!Weneedyou!Don'tgiveup!'**_

A breeze of a chuckle. _**'N-Not g-g-giving up. F-Find her. B...B-Be here when...y-you get b-b-back.'**_ The confidence was just what Sideswipe needed to hear in his twin's voice. The confidence, and the faint tinge of unmistakeable rage growing within the now still yellow form.

"Oh Primus! I think he's stabilized! Mikeala!" Ratchet spun to the girl, who nearly leapt onto his hand from her prone position on the table. She was let down, and immediately began proving just how flexible she was, worming her way back to where she was, deep under a multitude of cables and wires, to where more leaks still needed to be treated. "Hang on, Sunstreaker." The medic muttered quietly, watching her work, and noting Sideswipe's position on the ground. "There are far too many who need you to survive, do not give up, young warrior."

_**'F-Find her, S-S-Sides. P...P-Please...'**_ The touch and feelings were fading.

Sideswipe keened lowly in pain, reaching in vain for the touch, to keep it with him. _**'Don't leave me, bro!'**_ It was useless, though. The touch was gone, and Sunstreaker was still and quiet once more.

"Sideswipe? Did something happen? Did you sense something?" Ratchet turned to him.

Being brought painfully back into the world of the living, Sideswipe snarled lowly. His mind flashed to Dead End, offlined by his brother, and he stood, going rigid. His optics flashed a deep, alarming red, and Ratchet admittedly backed up, alarmed. _Dead End's already offline. I'll just offline another 'Con, then. They're all the same._ Some part of his mind that was still amazingly rational told him that wasn't true, and he pushed it aside. _'Con did this to my brother. 'Con will pay._ He turned and angrily stalked from the room, stomping carelessly down the halls, and sending the occasional human scattering with a yelp, to avoid being stepped on. _'Con will pay. I'll find her, and I'll make them all pay._

He entered the main hangar, and paused momentarily at the cars before him. They were just normal cars, and he had to physically restrain himself from throwing them out of his way. Then his optics caught a flash of silver.

He thought clearly about his form, a bright red Ferrari. The Decepticons would know that form. They'd expect that form. _That_ form, on the other hand...

Bella's face flashed in his memory banks, and he snarled loudly. He heard the sound of an engine and looked outside to see a single C-17 just landing, before it transformed into Jetfire. His optics flashed as they met with the deeper, crimson ones, and abruptly Jetfire vented, transforming again. Funny how Jetfire has turned from an old jet, to a cargo plane, but right now, he didn't give two frags. It was what he needed. That's all that mattered.

_They'll pay. They'll all pay! And I'll find her, too! I'll save her, and bring her back to Sunstreaker, and everything will be okay!_ Sideswipe ran a sensor web over the vehicle he'd eyed. A brand new model not even tested, or released to the general public, yet, and he filed away the information. He could already feel the differences, as his form modified, and he stepped forward.

People stopped and stared, watching as the red mech changed. A lot of them had never seen it before, being newer recruits, and they all watched as his body sharpened, and the deep red paint bled away into a lighter pink, lightening and fading even more before it changed tones all together.

In a matter of seconds, gone was the red Autobot they'd come to know, with the curious, friendly blue optics. In his place was a silver, sharper warrior, with deadly crimson optics that had most humans running for cover.

With a rev of a powerful sports engine, Sideswipe stepped outside the hangar and transformed down. The humans watched, worried, as the new, 2009 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray sped off, squealing into a U-turn to back onto the C-17, which quickly took off only moments later.

Officer Jesse Foster felt his jaw drop.

"God help whoever pissed that 'Vette off." He muttered, shaking his head, before he turned and walked off.

* * *

**Written** : Oct 9, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	61. Attack

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

**(The Next Day, Normal POV)**

Sideswipe sat impatiently, warding off recharge as Jetfire neared their destination. Even travelling at top speed, it took the better part of a day to get to the drop of location. Considering the bot had apparently been running reconnaissance as well, Sides was fragging lucky he'd returned to check up on things at the base, when he did.

_**"Optimus isn't pleased, but says he'll meet you."**_

He jolted from his thoughts, and frowned, annoyed. _**"I didn't ask you to tell him we were approaching."**_ He nearly snarled the statement, while his spark continuously felt for that ghostly touch from his brother. _Sunny..._

_**"He is my Prime. He asked for an update on your condition and that of your twin, and I reported. I will not lie or with-hold information from my leader."**_ It wasn't an accusation, insult or rebuke, just a simple matter of fact.

Sideswipe's optics narrowed, and his powerful engine revved angrily. _**"Time till arrival!"**_ He snapped angrily, shaking as he struggled to restrain himself from jumping ship. Literally. Or in this case, jumping plane. It was still an annoying thought that Jetfire had to land quite a distance away, but any closer and they risked human detection, and people taking notice of a cargo plane landing in unusual areas.

If the humans found out, there was a pretty good chance Decepticons running patrol would, too. They wanted to keep the element of surprise, so they were forced to remain a few cities out.

There was a moment of silence. _**"Sunstreaker will be fine, Sideswipe."**_ It was slightly affronted, but also understanding. _**"He has to be. He has you, Sunfire and Bella to protect. There is no reason to snap at me, youngling, you know I am only doing what is right."**_

_He's interfering..._ A small, conspiratal part of his processor whispered, even as Sides figuratively shook his head to clear it. _**"...I...I know. But they have Bella. Primus only **_**knows**_** what they're doing to her! Sunny..."**_ His spark ached, reaching further and feeling the faintest hint of a touch in return. The only sign Sunstreaker was still with him. _**"Sunstreaker asked me to find her. He...He needs her. We need her. I need him-"**_ He abruptly cut himself off, his spark working into a frenzy.

_**"Trust in Prime. He knows what's best."**_

_For the team. Not necessarily for me. Or Sunny. Or Bella. If there's too many 'Cons, he'll pull back. I can't pull back. I _won't_ pull back! Sunny asked this of me! Sunny... Sunny... __**'Sunny...?'**_ He faintly ghosted a touch of his own over the link between them, looking for something. Anything. _**'I...I can't do this without you. Please... You were always-'**_ He cut himself off sharply, venting and forcing himself to clear his mind, and at least attempt to reach a state of calm.

The plane shifted angles then, and his sensors indicated a change in velocity. At the same time, Jetfire informed him they were landing, and Optimus was twenty minutes out.

_**"Doesn't matter."**_ Sideswipe dismissed the probing ping from Optimus and the others. _**"If he's not here when we land, I'm leaving. I'll find the femme, no matter what."**_

_**"Sideswipe-"**_

He snarled angrily, his optics flashing back to crimson as he thought about Sunstreaker, and Bella, and all the things the 'Cons would do to her. _**"I'm going."**_

Jetfire, for his own part, wanted to stop. He wanted to turn around and drag Sideswipe back to the base kicking and screaming, if he had to, but he couldn't. Somehow he knew, if he betrayed Sideswipe, it would mean the currently silver twin losing what was left of his control, and probably hurting many. Not only that, even Optimus knew the Autobots were severely outnumbered. Any assistance was more than welcome.

But in this shape, Sideswipe would do little good for them. He just hoped that Primus saw fit to smile down on them all. Especially the twins.

They'd already been through more than enough.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

"Touch me with that hand, and I swear to God I'll remove it. Slowly and painfully." I growled and glared at Starscream, standing rigidy by the door to his 'chambers'. I was terrified, and horrified. I knew what he was after, and I could feel the tell tale burn in my spark, telling me I was experiencing spark-calling again. It didn't hurt anymore, but the fact was, if he got too close, I was terrified of what would happen.

That didn't seem to phase him, though. He smirked at me, and stalked me like I was prey. Every time I took a step back, he took one forward. The door was locked from the outside, which I found out the hard way, so I was just trying to avoid getting within arm's reach and getting caught.

"I know you want this, femme. I can sense the increase in energy output. Your body is primed for sparkmerging." He sneered and I shuddered in disgust.

My cooling fans switched on, and my spark lurched with nausea at the fact he could _tell_ I was in spark-call. I took a step to the side, and he mimicked me, taking one in the same direction, and forward, nearing me even more. "I'd rather rip my own spark out!" I hissed, panting, eyes darting around the room nervously as I struggled to find a way out. "I'll never be your queen, no matter what it takes! If you get me with sparkling, I'll rip it out with my bare hands!"

His optics flashed, and he hissed. "I'll simply have to remove your hands, then, when I'm finished with you." He took another step forward, and he was now dangerously close. "And if I have to, I'll simply restrain you. Come on, you want to make this easy on yourself."

He stepped closer, and I lurched forward, dashing past him. Then I shrieked as he grabbed me, and growled as I was thrown painfully against a wall. _Damn it! It didn't work with Soundwave, why the hell did I try it with Starscream?_ I leaned back as he braced himself over me, feeling the rocky wall digging into my back. I breathed heavily, folding my hands over my chest plates, as if I could ward him off, the terror eating at me.

"They don't want you." I swallowed, shaking, at his cold words. "They never wanted you, and they never will. You're just another femme. A... I believe the term is, 'a good lay'? Somebot to spark with. That's all. When they're through, they'll act as though you're nothing to them, leaving you with your precious little sparkling, used and alone." He smirked.

"You'd know all about using femmes, wouldn't you." My voice was hoarse as he pressed himself up against me. I was forced to tilt my head back at a painful level, he was _so_ huge, but I glared at him as darkly as possible. "Thats all you want, anyways. Not a queen. Not an equal to love. A _baby machine_. Somebot to spit out sparklings for you, to breed your own army. Do you know why I'd _never_ chose you? Because you're a soulless monster! No femme in her right mind would _ever_ want you!"

He snarled, and suddenly, I was crying out as he gripped my arms. It all happened so fast, my head was spinning, but he gripped my arms tightly enough to hurt like hell, before I found myself airborn. I landed harshly against a cold, unforgiving surface, and the breath was knocked out of me. Red flashed in my vision, and I lay sprawled against a flat surface, struggling to breathe.

Some part of my mind warned me that if I didn't watch myself, he'd kill me. Then I mentally shrugged. I'd rather die, than be raped. So if I pissed him off to that point... Good.

Slowly, I got to my feet, pain echoing up my back, and I watched as Starscream visibly shook. I stared at him, pressing back against the berth behind me, my fingers digging into the edge of it. Then I slowly raised my arms. I curled my hands into fists, and brought them up in front of my face, and he actually _paused_.

"What the slag do you think you're doing?" He shook his head, before outright laughing at me. "You don't think your pathetic fighting abilities are going to stop me, do you?" He almost seemed to moan a little. "They will only make my breaking you all the more delicious." He stepped forward, reaching out for me.

_Just... Just... Just...breathe! Just breathe!_ I inhaled deeply, and grabbed his incoming arm, before jabbing out with the other and clipping him in the nose plating with the heel of my hand. Pain ran up my arm, through my damaged and weakened wrist, but Starscream staggered back with a cry.

"Oh frag, that was a _bad_ thing to do." He spoke lowly. He reach up, gently touching at the area, his optics flashing. "Now you're going to get it." He stalked forward again, this time more menacingly. Gone was his almost patient prowling, this time he was going to _hurt_ me.

I backed up, yelping as I backed into the berth, and then ducking down as he swung for me. I spun, awkwardly, and grabbed at cables in his side. _It worked before._ I pulled with all my might, before spinning again and kicking him hard in the back.

He stumbled, and I nearly landed on my aft.

_Damn! He's too big!_ My eyes widened as he spun, quick as lightning, and reached out. I grabbed for his hands, trying to throw him off, but he quickly broke free, and grabbed my wrists, squeezing until the keening wail that escaped me was loud and agonized.

More warnings flashed in my vision, and I was aware of being pushed back. Something hit my back, hard, and then hands were grabbing harshly at my chest plates, ripping at them. Fingers snagged and ripped at the catches, that released embarrassingly quickly at the touch.

"Hah! Told you, you wanted this!" He snarled, gripping the edge of one of my chest plates.

"NO!" I fought against him, pushing. I kicked him as hard as I could between the legs, and he only smirked. _Jesus bloody- He's numb in the crotch!_ Any other situation, and I could have died laughing. For now, I was too busy, fighting off his hands. "LET ME GO, YOU BASTARD!" I swung a hand out, and slapped him as hard as I could.

Starscream snarled loudly enough that it echoed off the walls of the room, and his head shot to the side. The hand around my wrist disappeared then, only to be replaced by a hand curling around my throat, and cutting off my oxygen.

I gasped, my eyes widening.

"I've had it with you! You aren't even worth breeding with! Pathetic, worthless femme! No wonder they'll never want you! You don't even know your slagging _place_!" He squeezed.

I had an odd sense of deja vu then, as the door swished open and a figure stalked in.

"Autobots spotted in the viscinity. Forces mobilizing." Soundwaves monotonous voice rang soundly through the room, even over my own choking as I clawed at Starscream's hand.

"I'm busy." He hissed, never taking his optics off me. "The femme's too troublesome. I'm going to offline her. We'll leave her lifeless corpse here for the Autobots." He sneered and chuckled, darkly.

I tried to gasp, but unlike before, there was _no_ air getting in. I couldn't breathe, and my core temperature was quickly rising. I clawed at his hands, but I couldn't even think clearly enough to find a quick way out of this. I couldn't speak. I couldn't think. All my bravado, my sheer desperation to survive, were gone. All I could feel was pain and terror. Blinding terror.

Then an explosion rang out, causing the room to shake.

Starscream finally tore his optics off me, and spun, snarling. "That was too close! Can't you fools do anything right? How'd they get into the base so fast?"

Soundwave looked about as startled as I could have imagined. But then again, my vision was getting blurry, and I couldn't see him all _that_ well, so... "That was not the Autobots. Origin of the blast: ..." There was a moment of silence. "Unidentified. We should retreat at once."

"After I deal with _her_." Starscream turned his attention back on me, smiling sickeningly. "How does it feel, femme? To feel your life slipping away. I ended all the femmes like this, and I will continue to do so."

"Femme is important."

"The femme is just an annoying, pathetic femme. She's nothing. There are three more on the Autobot side."

"Femme is more important than you realize." There was a warning in Soundwave's voice.

My vision was beginning to blacken around the edges. Flashes of red in my eyes warned me my body was overheating dangerously. The cooling fans were all off, and my chest began to burn, like I was literally being burned alive. Like I was on fire.

"It doesn't matter. She'll be dead in minutes."

The room went silent, and my vision darkened to a dull grey-white. I thought I was about dead, that I'd lost all my faculties. Then I heard the voice.

"I cannot allow that."

Abruptly, I felt cold, numb, like I was falling. I heard...an explosion. The sound of screams. Gasping harshly, I struggled to pull oxygen into my starving tanks. All at once, I could hear and feel my cooling fans switching on, on the highest, loudest setting I'd ever recalled. My body thrummed with them, and I could feel my spark-pulse through my entire body, from the tips of my toes, to the top of my head.

I gasped, and I panted, and my vision cleared.

I was shocked to see Soundwave on top of Starscream holding him down. His tentacles were there again, this time slipping effortlessly into Starscream's body. After a second, I watched as Starscream snarled, and reached down, grabbing and pulling on the tentacles and pulling them out of his body, slowly.

As the feeling rushed back into my body, I got to my feet. The door was wide open, but I still don't think I was thinking clearly. I turned and took off, running out into the hall. Each hallway looked the same as the last, but I picked one randomly and ran down it.

I bypassed bots, sometimes being grabbed at, and shot at. A blinding pain shot up my leg, but I hobbled on with nothing more than a yelp of terrified agony. I don't know how long I ran. I turned down halls, through doors, peering into rooms. I had to duck behind obstacles, to hide from the Decepticons running around.

Finally, I think the First Prime had done something to help me out, because I spotted a light and ran towards it like there was no tomorrow. Minutes later, and I was escaping out into the open air.

And directly into a battlefield.

Decepticons spun to me, snarling at each other, and I broke into a hobbling mad dash again. I turned, and took off for the nearby woods, plastering my hands over my chest. I spotted Autobots in the far distance, but didn't run towards them. They were mostly engaged, anyways. I spotted familiar former Decepticons there, too, but I ran the other way.

I hit the tree line and transformed down, screaming at the pain in my leg.

"Get the femme!"

I turned to see Sideways glowering at me through red optics, and Thrust and Ramjet were rushing my way quickly. Turning away, I ducked into the trees, running as fast as I could.

I tripped, and I stumbled, and I ran like there was no tomorrow. I ducked around trees, dodged boulders and incoming hands. I could hear the two bots right behind me, and could feel the warmth of a hand, as it reached out to grab me.

Just as I could feel the palm against my back, and see the fingers in my peripheral, my foot caught on something, and I fell with a shriek.

Then, the most unexpected thing happened.

I was rescued.

By the most beautiful silver 2009 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I was too scared to be thankful for Sideswipe's appearance, or even to question it. The fact he was here, and in _that_ form, couldn't be good. If he was here, though, what did that mean for Sunstreaker? Why change his form?_

_The moment he transformed, and surprisingly easily dispatched the two 'Cons, I knew. His optics were red. Deep, angry, Decepticon crimson. I knew he wasn't a Decepticon. This is _Sideswipe_ we're talking about. That didn't help though._

_He turned those red optics on me, and I _panicked_! I didn't see Sideswipe glowering down at me with a look that would make Screamer seem sane. I was seeing Starscream himself. I was seeing him reaching for me, speaking those cold, hate filled words again._

_He crouched down, and I bolted._

_I stumbled to my feet and began running again. Behind me, I could hear him calling out to me, feel the ground shaking as he undoubtedly chased after me, but I never once paused._

_Soon, I found myself hitting the outskirts of a town, and ducking between trees, rocks, and cacti whenever I could, to avoid being grabbed. When my cover ran out, I transformed painfully into my Porsche mode, and sped off down the highway, clipping vehicles in my haste to get away._

_I don't know how long I ran, or drove, or where I was going, but as soon as I lost sight of Sideswipe, I ducked into a back alley and transformed again, taking off._

_I found myself an abandoned apartment complex and climbed inside, curling up in an empty apartment, as I cried, shaking and terrified, and in pain. I sobbed, seeing Starscream's face. And I sobbed harder at the look on Sideswipe's._

_That wasn't the mech I'd come to know and love from the fanfictions. That wasn't the mech I'd met in person. That was...something else. Something...bad. Something... Something I honestly hoped to God I never saw again._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Oct 11, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	62. Boomer

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I recently had a rather interesting dream about a super-sized combiner Decepticon, and dreamt of an Autobot named Boomer, who was either a blue Mazda 3 or a blue Mazda Axela. I've never heard of Boomer before, but found out he actually supposedly _is_ an existing Autobot. I don't know. -_-' I don't remember. LOL Either way, this is the Boomer from my dream.

Oh! And around this point, you'll see me bounce from a possible plotline to another possible plotline. In truth, I wanted to go shard hunters one day, and did some of that, but didn't want to do an endless sequence of missions to find shards, so... I ended up changing it up with a new big bad showing up, while the bots are hunting shards. You'll see soon. -_-'

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

Her actions were like a kick in the chest plates for him.

He'd been angered, in a rage, as he rolled up to the battlefield, finding everyone engaged. Optimus was seconds behind him, and joined in the battle, but he didn't fight them. His optics danced over the Decepti-scum before him. More than he cared to admit were familiar, obvious survivors from the war on Cybertron, but there were a few he didn't know.

He didn't pay much attention to what was going on around him, until he heard the cry. A cry of a familiar, psychotic 'Con, to capture a femme.

When he looked, two of the Decepticon Seekers were chasing down a small human girl, who was holding her chest with a look of terror, energon leaking from her damaged leg. What was left of his sanity snapped at the pain and fear in her, and he transformed, zooming recklessly through the trees. He didn't care that his paint was getting scratched up, or the dents he got when he couldn't swerve _quite_ fast enough to avoid hitting a tree.

All that mattered was the messy dark hair he finally spotted. The fingers of the 'Con that were closing around her, and the look on her face as she tripped, _just_ barely avoiding the hand reaching for her. Snapping, he transformed up and tackled the nearest bot.

The battle was easy, even with his processor otherwise occupied, but when he turned to Bella... Everything snapped back into focus. The darkness in him, swallowing him up, fled. The bright blue optics staring up at him in pain and unbelieveable terror somehow grounded him in a way he hadn't felt since Sunstreaker was hurt. He _needed_ her near him right there and then.

But the moment he crouched down, wanting to touch her and needing to know she was real, she shrieked and fled.

He didn't understand it, but her actions hurt him deeply. She was afraid of him. _Afraid_, of _him_! It was like Dead End's blade had hit _him_ in the chest, and he shuddered, before quickly transforming. He had the overwhelming urge to take out every Decepticon he could, but his brother's voice and Bella's face kept flashing through his mind.

_**'Sunny... Something happened...'**_ He reached out, trying to feel his brother, and keep his optics on the girl who was clearly running for her life. He called to her verbally, but she didn't give any sign of hearing or responding to him. _**'Something's happened to Bella.'**_ There was a flare of the awareness, and he sped up, feeling a rush of power. _**'You need to survive. The Decepticons... They've done something to her. She's... She's afraid of me.'**_ His spark tore, and he growled, as he dodged around cacti, trees, thick bushes, and boulders.

When she transformed, he followed her to the main roads, cursing as she sped around cars and into town. He lost her when she slid between cars he didn't dare try, moving risky and insanely, and he couldn't follow her smaller form through a lot of the gaps.

Not without harming the innocent humans in the cars, and as little as he cared about _them_ at that very moment, his Autobot programming refused to allow him to try.

_**'I'll...I'll find her. I need to find her and make things right, so I can bring her back to you. Stay strong for us brother.'**_ His spark pulled uncomfortably as drifted into town, clearing his sensors to search for her energy signal, and hers alone. He ignored everything but her, locating her moving through spaces he couldn't easily get to, and he had to sit still and wait. _**'Stay strong, please.'**_

As soon as she seemed to pause, he was off, slipping smoothly into traffic and seamlessly changing lanes and taking corners, mapping out the most efficient way to her.

* * *

**(?)**

His sensors had been at full since he landed on this unusual planet. He'd hated having to change his form, but to exist here he'd had to adapt. He'd found everything confusing and interesting, but his main objective had been to find his own kind. Unfortunately, the message he'd received hadn't been too specific as to where to meet up. Tranquility Nevada was a large city, and he'd _been_ there, but he had yet to find the others.

And if he couldn't, he'd just have to content himself to living in secret amongst these hairless 'monkeys' until he got another message.

So he expanded his search, leaving his sensors at max, filtering out all the unusual energy readings from this planet, and focusing on finding _any_ Cybertronians in general. For all of six days, he searched Tranquility. He was only on his second day in this new city, before he picked up on the readings he'd been looking for.

Signals.

Two of them.

One read as Autobot. The other...

His optic ridges rose in surprise, as he tuned into that signal more than any other, and he rocked on his axels. To anyone else, it would look like a small blue Mazda 3 shifted minutely. He didn't care. He focused on that signal, before slipping out of his parking spot. His sensors informed him as he pulled up near a silver Corvette. A quick internet search told him it was a model that wasn't generally released yet.

It was also a fancy model, drawing far too much attention, though the Autobot wearing it didn't seem to notice or care. It also seemed, as he followed the bot, incidentally toward the location of the unusual other signal, he didn't notice the fact he was _being_ followed. By another Cybertronian. Literally almost right on that aft.

Then again, considering the rather battered form, something was going on. Something big.

He followed the silver Corvette down numerous roads, before him found them both slipping through empty back streets, and towards what looked like a more abandoned section to the city.

Frowning slightly, he nearly skidded to a stop as the vehicle before him squealed into a U-turn, facing him with an angrily revving engine.

_I believe there's a human turn of phrase for this... _He googled human sayings and raised an optic ridge, before following the Corvette's lead and transforming. _'Show time'._ He faced down the bot, recognizing the sky blue optics, filled with anger and suspicion. _"Relax. I mean you no harm. I am Boomer. I'm an Autobot."_ He blinked as the bot snarled at him, but the blades he'd subspaced seemed to disappear once more. _"I read your signature, and realize you were on your way towards an unusual signature. Am I... Is that other signature really... It... It resembles the Allspark!"_ He wasn't usually a big talker, but he couldn't believe it. The signature read as Cybertronian. A bot. A living being. But it also read as the ancient power of their people.

He'd never sensed anything like this.

_"Stay back! If you touch her, I'll slag you myself, ally or not!"_ The other bot snarled, startling him.

_"I meant no harm."_ He raised his hands in a sign of peace, frowning in confusion. Then he blinked. _"Wait, 'her'? It's a _femme_?"_ He'd been about to ask other questions, but before he could, the bot spun and crouched next to a human building.

_"Leave it."_ The bot's optics flashed, and a tiny human form appeared before him. It was of a blonde male, with silvery blonde hair and bright, piercing blue organic optics. As he watched, the bot's little human form walked almost warily into the building. "Bella?"

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

I rocked in the corner, struggling to control myself. I felt horrible, like slag and then some, for running away from Sideswipe. Deep down, I knew he was a good bot. I knew and I fully believed he wouldn't hurt me. Not on purpose. Not physically. But Starscream's words kept slamming into my head, like an endless tidal wave. I was forced to face what I knew, and what I thought I knew.

Sideswipe's optics scared me, more than him himself. He reminded me of Starscream, simply because of the hostile, nearly insane look in them. Not the color. Not the expression on his face. The cold hatred in his optics.

But I still ran. I ran in terror, and there's no way he could have missed the fact _he_ was what scared me. I rocked, sobbing, shaking, and trying to ignore the dull ache in my chest plates, where they'd bent ever so slightly under Starscream's force. Even now, in my human form, I had blue-ish bruising in the area.

That pain was the last thing on my mind. My mind was really going over...

_I ran. I ran away from them all. I'm hiding. What am I doing? What am I _supposed_ to do?_ I was scared, confused, and felt cornered. I was away from the Decepticons, but how long until they found me again? I'd been so much trouble, would the Autobots even _want_ me back? Would they come after me? I ran from _Sideswipe_ of all mechs! You'd think I'd fear Sunstreaker more!

A pain lanced through my park.

_Sunstreaker... Sunny... _I felt cold, empty. _What happened to him? Why wasn't he with Sideswipe? Is he okay? Why did Sideswipe change his form and color? It couldn't have been because of me! He seemed to _like_ the red Ferrari form!_ I continued to rock, eyeing the entrance of the apartment building through the doorless entry to the apartment I'd chosen randomly.

Then a figure appeared in the door, and I stopped rocking. Fear, longing and guilt ran through me, when I spotted Sideswipe's human holographic form. I'd deafened myself to what was going on around me, but now I could pick up the revving of his engine, as he called my name. That also meant I could pick up on the other engine, too, as well as deep whistles and clicks.

I froze, immediately assuming the worst. If he was facing me, maybe he wasn't aware of the presence. Or maybe he didn't think it was a threat, but it _could _be. I stood, and stepped forward, and Sideswipe's holographic head shot to me. It hit me then, his hair was silvery yellow, instead of strawberry blonde, like before. "S-Sides...?" I whispered, my voice trembling.

His eyes locked unerringly on me, and his whole body shifted as his holographic form raced forward, rushing at me. "Bella!" He swooped in, before I could even tense, and wrapped his arms around me in a tight hug. "Oh _Primus_! I was so worried! Why did you run? You know I'd never hurt you!" He hugged me tightly, only letting up on the pressure when I hissed in pain. "Oh slag! What did that fragger do to you?"

I shook my head. The last thing I wanted was to even think about it. Let alone talk about it. I just wrapped my hands in his shirt. Even with the nagging insecurities filling me, I couldn't help the way his presence soothed me, now that the red eyes and hostile, borderline insane look was gone. "I-I'm fine." It was a lie, and I'm fairly certain we both knew it.

He pulled away and shot a doubtful look at my chest.

I rolled my eyes, and huffed a shaky, forced laugh. "See something y-you l-like?" I shivered, and pulled back until he was forced to either follow me, or release me. He chose to release me, and I sighed a little, torn between disappointment and relief.

"He hurt you." It was a low growl.

Shaking my head violently, I shivered again. "H-He tried. H...He got close." _So close. Too close._ My entire body shuddered in revulsion. "Soundwave... He pulled him off me. Let me escape." I thought for a moment, before wincing. "I left him back there." The sliver of guilt was swallowed under fear and uncertainty. Even if he'd saved me, that didn't mean I could trust him. What if he was like-Oh God! "Who?" I looked at Sideswipe sharply. "Who was the traitor?" He looked shocked, before his eyes flashed red. "Starscream was gloating about a traitor on the inside. Who was it? Is everyone okay? Did you find him?"

"Dead End." The name was a snarl of disgust, and Sideswipe made a face, like saying the name somehow made him physically ill. He shook his head, before wincing, his expression changing to one of agony as he clutched almost desperately at his chest. He shot me a look, a look of pure vulnerability. His eyes were _so_ wide, and so very blue. "H-He tried to kill Prime. Su... Sunny... He..."

My eyes widened as he choked off in pain, and my own hands raised to my chest as the hot hum of spark-call gave way to a hot throb of agony. _Just like my fears... _"No." I shook my head again, stepping forward. "He has to be okay! He has to! I tried so hard!" My eyes burned with tears, and I ignored the almost inquisitive warbles coming from outside the complex. "He has to be okay! Tell me he's okay, Sideswipe!"

His eyes were narrowed, filled with pain and anger, and despite the edge to his expression, there was something about him that reminded me more of a lost little boy than an experienced warrior. "He's... He's weak. I can only feel him sometimes."

"Why are you here?"

"I... I wasn't thinking clearly. He...n-nearly offlined. Multiple times. B-But I heard him. He asked me to find you. He... He needs to see you. H-He _begged_ me to find you! Sunstreaker doesn't _beg_!" His voice rose in volume and pitch as he spoke, growing more and more desperate. "Please, come back with me!"

Looking away probably wasn't the most reassuring thing I could do. Or the kindest, most understanding, but I couldn't help it. I was suddenly assaulted with doubts. _If they're just playing with me, they wouldn't _need_ to see me. Sunny wouldn't have 'begged' Sideswipe to come get me. But he's not joking. This isn't a joke. Sunstreaker's hurt. Bad. And Sideswipe is here for me, and me alone._ It hit me then, that if Sunstreaker was hurt by a traitor, whom I was guessing was already offlined, and Sideswipe was here... Chances were he should have been out of his mind, in a blind rage, bloodlust leading him to at least _try_ to offline every Decepticon in the area.

He was _here_ with _me._

"B-Bella?"

My eyes snapped back to him, and the anger seemed to fade, confusion, desperation, worry all taking it's place. His eyes were glazed, watery, and his hand a fist in his shirt. "Why... Why aren't you answering? Why look away?" He seemed _so_ uncertain, all of a sudden. Then his expression hardened with one of horror. "They _did_ do something to you! Those slagging 'Cons-"

"Filled my head with...horrible things to think about." I muttered, cutting him off. He seemed to freeze. "They seemed to prefer mental, emotional torture to anything else." Then I rubbed at my aching throat, being reminded of the injuries I'd suffered as my leg and wrist seemed to flare up, and my back throbbed angrily. I was just suddenly aware of every physical pain I had, as if it was telling me the irony of my words. "Everything else is...because I pissed off Starscream, and was clumsy."

"What did they say?" His voice was deadly quiet.

I shook my head. Remembering what they said only hurt more, instilled more 'what if' scenarios into my mind. It also led to whatever happened just before and just after their mental torture. When the physical had taken place. I didn't want to remember. To think about it. "You said Sunstreaker is...hurt...bad?" I sent a quick, silent prayer to the First Prime and Primus himself to keep Sunstreaker safe, and please keep him alive. "Then...y-you need to get back to him."

"Me?" He frowned, confused. I'd always pictured Sideswipe of being fairly sharp, but he was so full of questions and seemed so slow right now. It had to be because he was undoubtedly trying to contact his brother, speak to him, at the same time. Or because he was thrown by everything that happened. "You mean _we_. Sunfire's waiting, too, you know."

Like a slap to the face, I winced.

_Yeah, I do. Thanks for the reminder._ I had to go back, despite my doubts and worries.

There was a whistle, and Sideswipe snarled, his head snapping around so fast, I was shocked I didn't hear something snap. His gaze went distant, and I watched his wheeled feet moving as he straightened outside the building. He began to whistle and click in his deep, metallic voice, and though I didn't understand what he was saying, I got the feeling he was pretty pissed.

Everything went quiet a moment, and Sideswipe seemed to sigh, closing his holographic eyes. His real body shifted again, and a quieter, softer set of clicks and whistles sounded, before holo-Sides turned back to me. "Can we go? Please?" It was quiet, pleading.

As uncertain as I was, I couldn't help but nod. Like it or not, that base was my home now. I had friends there. Rika, for one. Sunfire, for another. I was afraid to see Sunstreaker, but if he was really badly hurt, I felt I _needed_ to see him. I had to make sure he'd be okay. I had to be there, in case Ratchet needed help.

After all, I didn't go through so much to reunite them, only to lose him now.

* * *

**Written** : Oct 15, 2010

**Note** : Ugh, I've been glued to Twitter recently. I'm following two of my favorite TVD stars, and checking around for others to follow. You can find me at **DaemonicKitten** if you wanna add me; I occasionally update with news on fiction ideas. Not too often, admittedly, but occasionally. I'm still getting used to the site, so...

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	63. More Confrontations

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Sorry about the late update, guys. Been kinda out of it, and lost track of time! I almost forgot to update today! -_-' I'm...stuck working on my Vampire Diaries/Rose Red crossover, at the moment. -_-' Anywho, here's the next update, and FYI: I don't know Boomer. I just kind of pulled all this out of my aft. -_-' LOL

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_We made our way to a clearing some distance out. Riding in Sideswipe was tension-building. I couldn't relax, sitting rigidly, and of course he just _had_ to notice it, and _had_ to comment. As far as he knew, the Decepticons had physically and mentally tortured me. I don't think he knew Starscream tried to...to... Well, I didn't even want to _think_ about that. The point is, we drove back to the waiting C-17s, and I couldn't help but question Sides about his choice of alternate mode._

_His answer was that, not only would silver stand out less in the forest, than a bright cherry red, at the time it had suited his mood. He felt numb without Sunstreaker's presence in his mind. Empty. And grey, or silver, was neutral, like he felt. As for the form, it was flashy, which he liked, and it was the one he'd remembered me telling him about._

_He had no known feelings about changing back to the red Ferrari. I guess Sunstreaker's progress would be the deciding factor. As it was, I felt unnerved by how much more like the movie Sides he seemed._

_And on that note, I found myself frowning, worried._

_Who was Boomer? Why had I _never_ heard of him before? Sure, I didn't remember jack squat of the G1 series, or cartoons, or manga, but I don't recall _ever_ coming across a bot named Boomer. And he didn't seem to talk much. He just looked at me in shock, introduced himself, got my name in return, and we left. That's it. I wondered if he was like me, but Sideswipe immediately negated that thought, telling me Boomer was an Autobot medic. More of an assistant medic, or kind of like a field medic/decent but not excellent warrior, but a medic nonetheless._

_Which made me wonder..._

_Where was he in the movie? He's not Jolt, the blue Chevy Volt. Who was he, and why was he here now?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

We raced back ahead of the other bots. We didn't wait for them. As soon as Sideswipe and Boomer were aboard Jetfire, we were off.

The ride was quiet, but not relaxing. Jetfire made a passing comment about being glad to have me back, and I could only hum in response. Sideswipe didn't say anything, and neither did Boomer. Boomer seemed almost relaxed, the small Mazda an unusual addition to our troop count, and I prayed to Primus himself that this bot wasn't a traitor. Then I vaguely wondered how Dead End's betrayal would cause the others to react.

Sideswipe trembled the entire ride back. I wanted nothing more than to comfort him in _some _faction, but had no idea how. I actually had to curl my fingers around the seat, to keep from touching at him, only to realize... I was touching at him. I nearly ripped my hands off his seat, and I felt his form jolt from the abrupt move.

"Say what you want, I _know_ they've done something." He growled lowly.

I shuddered, his growl reminiscent of Starscream's. I know I shouldn't have thought that, but after today... After the last several days... "Please don't growl at me, like that." I murmured quietly, ducking my head down.

He froze solid. He stopped shaking, his engine stopped growling. It was like all sound just faded, and a near deafening silence took us over. I couldn't help but fidget, playing with my fingers absently as I struggled not to look outright uncomfortable. Then, Sideswipe vented. "Femme... _Bella_, why won't you tell me what happened? I thought you trusted me?" He sounded oddly like the Sideswipe I'd gotten to know, _before_ all this.

I startled, looking up sharply. "What? Trust... I- Sideswipe, this has nothing to do with..." I trailed off then, realizing I was about to lie, without even meaning to. I was about to say it wasn't about trust, but wasn't it? Starscream told me they didn't want me. They were using me. If I really trusted them, wouldn't I believe that their sentiments were sincere? Wouldn't I tell them?

My eyes burned, and I shook my head, taking a shuddering breath. "It's... I... I just don't..." How was I supposed to tell them how insecure I felt? Without telling them what I thought of their actions. Without telling them what I wanted, and thought they wanted.

The plane shifted then, and I could tell we were landing. Sideswipe went rigid, and it took everything I had not to follow suit. "Slag it." He cursed quietly, his voice rumbling. "Bella-"

"It's painful to talk about." I whispered, the words just blurting out of me as I lowered my head. I glanced out of the driver side window, spotting the blue Mazda rolling forward silently, only to jump and gasp sharply as arms surrounded me. As quick as the jolt of terror hit me, it passed. _I'm inside a land vehicle. With four wheels and no wings. It's not Starscream._

Looking over my shoulder, I didn't miss the dark, broody look in the bright blue eyes staring at me. It was an expression eerily reminiscent of Sunstreaker, even as the Corvette rolled off the plane and towards the hangar, but Sideswipe didn't let me go. No, he held me tighter to him, curling me into his holographic chest with his arms around my waist.

"Whatever he did, he _will_ pay for it." He vowed quietly, eyes flashing. "He nearly took Sun-" Sides cringed, a pained expression, and the car shuddered, before he leaned forward, burying his face in my neck.

I couldn't fight the delicious shiver, or the heat in my chest, as much as I wanted to. Stupid spark...thing... I could feel the warm breaths puffing against my throat, and the warmth coming from his hard body pressed against mine, and my mind fell away from Starscream and his cruel words, instead being filled with all kinds of fantasies, I really could have done with out. Especially after everything that had happened.

Of course, he cursed again, and his grip tightened, briefly, as the car jolted to a stop.

"S-Sideswipe?" I looked back at him, stiffening a little.

"Ratchet has forbidden entrance to the medical bay." His eyes were distant, and his expression betrayed and shocked. "How...How could he? I need to see Sunny!" The engine revved loudly and the Corvette shook violently.

His grip was turning near painful, and I swallowed heavily, turning and eyeing the door. "M-Maybe I should..." My eyes landed on the handle. He couldn't want me around, not now. Not when he was clearly in pain. "Maybe I should...go."

"No!" His grip tightened impossibly more, causing me to yelp in pain, and pull away sharply.

"Sideswipe!" I grabbed the handle, and nearly fell out of the car when the door shot open without hesitation. I scrambled to my feet, and stepped back, turning to face the Corvette, which had gone shockingly still again. Vaguely, I was aware of people staring at us, Will and Epps walking over slowly, with Sam and Mikeala and the other humans remaining further back.

Rika looked like she wanted to run forward, but Foster was holding her back, speaking quietly, and my attention was focused too much on Sideswipe to make out what he was saying.

The 'Vette shook once more, before breaking up into countless parts, and I quickly followed suit. Not because I had to, but because instinctively, I felt I needed to. If he attacked me, though I knew that stray thought was ridiculous, I'd stand a slightly better chance of protecting myself as a robot than a tiny human. I didn't take into consideration the pain in my throat, chest, wrist and leg, though, and stumbled when I was done.

Sideswipe stared down at me with wide blue optics. He stepped forward, his mouth opening and shutting, before a new, truly concerned look crossed his features. "I didn't hurt you...?"

Honestly? "No." I shook my head, wrapping my arms around myself. The grip had been painful, but only lasted long enough to register the pain, before it was gone again. Out of my list of pains, that wasn't one of them.

"What did they _do_ to you?" He tilted his head, reaching out towards me.

I stiffened, but planted my feet to keep from running. I was here. I had to be brave. He... Sunstreaker was in bad shape. Sideswipe was acting like he needed me. Maybe it was because the other femmes weren't around, but if he needed me, I needed to be there for him.

Almost hesitantly, he reached out a hand. It lingered milimeters from my cheek, before ghosting such a light touch across it, it almost tickled. His fingers trailed down to my throat, and I winced at the pain such a light touch brought up. His optics narrowed, but his finger trailed down to my chest plates. I knew that to humans, the touch wouldn't seem like much, but as his fingers trailed over the catches to my chest plates, I pulled back sharply as the heat flared up.

My eyes shot to his optics, which had widened again, and he looked at me, hand still outstretched. "You... You say they didn't hurt you, but I can _see_ that they did." He moved forward, his fingers ghosting over my throat again, before trailing back down my chest, pausing over small dents near the catches. His optics narrowed dangerously and flashed with flecks of red, before he lowered his optics and his hand to my leg, where energon still dripped freely. Finally, he grabbed my arm gently, holding up my hand, and staring at the way my wrist hung limply.

"They _hurt_ her?" Rika's screech echoed through the hangar, and I glanced over to see Mikeala hissing at her, and Foster almost dragging her out.

"You guys are in deep, deep doodoo." I muttered quietly, knowing that they'd have hell to pay, when she got her way. I felt my heart pull uncomfortably, watching as my best friend was dragged away, and I was stuck with people I classified as friends, but really only barely knew. Turning back to the newly silver mech, I raised an eyebrow, trying not to dwell on the almost soothing touch of his hand on my arm, just below the elbow. "Sides..."

"What happened? You said they didn't physically hurt you. What, you spontaneously produced bruising? Bella, what happened to the trust we _did_ share? I know you trusted us. I could see it, _feel_ it when we were together!"

I hissed and ducked my head, more than aware more people were beginning to look, undoubtedly more curious about his shouting, than worried about my temporary absense. "Keep your voice down!"

"My _voice_?" He reared back, dropping my arm like it burned him. "Those Decepti-scum did _something_ to you, that's taking you _away_ from Sunny and me, and you want me to keep my _voice_ down? You want me to keep my fragging voice down, answer my questions! What the slag did they do to you?"

"_They told me you didn't want me!_" I found myself screaming. Then I felt like I suddenly went cold as ice and froze, as all sound once again died. No humans spoke. It seemed like they'd stopped _breathing_. Any bots in the areas also went quiet. I knew we were being stared at, and now my secrets were out in the open. I lowered my head as the familiar burning came back to my eyes. I was filled with undiluted horror and mortification, the pain I was in nothing compared to the cold horrific..._shock_ at what I'd just spit out. I _never_ planned to tell them what Starscream said to me.

After all, it only made it more real. Then there's the fact the Decepticons' words might have meant nothing to them. For all I knew, they could burst out laughing and say 'so?', like it was all no big deal. Or they could shake their heads and confirm the thought. Or they could be hurt that I even believed the 'Cons for a second. There was...any number of bad ways it could go.

But he didn't take any of them. It was hard, but I managed to raise my eyes, and met his optics, seeing nothing but shock and disbelief as he just...stared at me.

The whispers of the humans started up for a few seconds, before they died down again, and when I glanced down, families were dragging each other off, and soldiers were whistling innocently as they struggled to finish important work and make themselves scarce. The few that _did_ stray, obviously curious about the Cybertronian lover's spat, endured about two seconds of a rather dark, foreboding glare from Major William Lennox, and nearly ran off at the speed of light.

Soon enough, we were the only ones left. Boomer had disappeared, I guess checking out the new home base, and Jetfire had taken off, probably to help gather the rest of the troops.

"They said..." His voice was deadly soft, vulnerable once again. "And... A-And you... You believed..."

"T-They said you were just...playing with me." I let my head lower, folding my arms across my chest and letting my hands fist with tension. "That you're just using me." My voice was a low, pained whisper. "That... Why would you possibly..." I sucked in a sharp breath as the doubts nagged me again, and I felt the warm tears trailing over my cheeks. "Why... W-Why would _you_ want _me_? I-I..." I couldn't meet his optics any longer, turning away. "I... I don't even know how to speak Cybertronian. Or properly raise a sparkling-" Where _was_ Sunfire, anyways? Considering no one was freaking out, I had to believe she was okay with them.

"After everything-"

"I'm not even a real femme! I was _born_ human! I know next to nothing about Cybertronians! Hell, the freakin' Arcee triplets _ooze_ sexiness, and I stumble around like a newborn sparkling!" I gestured wildly with my good hand. "I can't fight and protect myself! I'm useless! What good am I?"

"B-" Sideswipe seemed to stumble, shaking his head as he seemed to fight for control. "I... Bella, we want you. As a sparkmate, not some random sparking. That's what we were going to ask you before you were botnapped." He grimaced.

I paused then, feeling impossibly colder. I remembered how awkward Sideswipe seemed, despite my cheery excitement of racing for the first time. I remembered how upset- "Right." Now the sarcasm hit, as I nodded and stepped back, away from him. "I didn't think it was possible for Sunny to be so..._enthusiastic_ about something."

"You remember." It wasn't a question, and I was startled to see the pain in his optics. "Then you remember he was upset about the _timing_! Sunny's never had an easy time getting close to anyone!"

"PRECISELY!" I screamed, stepping forward angrily. "_Every_ fanfiction I have _ever_ read, and trust me I've read a lot, portray the twins as _players_! They _don't_ settle down with a _single_ femme!" I paused then, recalling a couple smaller stories where they had, but... "Not in stories that make _sense_, anyways! Especially not femmes with sparklings! Femmes _born_ human! Not when there are real femmes around!"

"You _are_ a real femme! Slaggit! You might not realize it, but you _are_ sexy. Sensual. Beautiful. Strong. Brave. Courageous. Loving. Kind. Smart." He stepped forward with every word, until I was backing up and he was towering over me. "You are everything a mech would want in a femme! Frag it! So what if you don't know our language? You can learn it! We know yours! So what if you don't know how to raise a sparkling? You can _learn_!"

"And how much trouble is that going to be?"

"Trouble? We don't care about trouble! Are you _glitching_? Do you even recognize _who_ you're talking to? We _are_ trouble, femme!"

Blinking, I thought about all the pranks they'd pulled. In the fanfictions, and the few in real life that I'd seen, the two I'd pulled. The small laugh was out before I could stop it. It was shaky and weak, but I actually giggled slightly. "Yeah, that's true."

"Bella, forget whatever those slagging glitches told you! We want you. We _both_ want you! As a mate, for as long as we exist!"

"You sure about that?" I snorted, trying not to hope. "You both have a few millenia on me, you know."

He made a face and shuttered his optics briefly. "Yeah, well, if we offline first, you're free to mourn for a few millenia and join us." He gave me a Cybertronian version of a toothy grin then, before his head shot around and his body went rigid.

"S-Sideswipe?" I breathed deeply, and raised a hand to wipe at the tears clouding my vision.

"Ratchet's reporting." His entire body seemed to sag in on himself.

I felt my heart drop. "He's okay, isn't he? Sunstreaker, I mean! I mean, he... He wasn't in the movie. Was it...because of me? W-Was I the reason?"

Looking at me sharply, Sideswipe frowned. "No. It has nothing to do with you. Well, that's not true. Sunstreaker's stable." He raised a hand to his chest. "I can feel him again. It's weak, but he's there." He paused a moment, then grimaced. He rolled his optics my way, and raised an optic ridge. "This isn't over, Isabella."

I shuddered. "_Don't_ call me that! That stupid piece of pit spawn called me that."

His optics flashed. "He'll never call you anything again, I promise. My point is, this isn't over, but Ratchet wants to see you." I shifted uncomfortably, and he held out his hand. "You won't be alone, but I..." He looked away, pained.

I knew he wanted to see Sunny. Honestly, I was a little unsure still. It was easy enough to _say_ you wanted someone, but not to actually follow through. Or maybe I was paranoid. Anything was really possible, unfortunately. Still, as unsure as I was, there was a niggling deep in my -I was still getting used to the changes in terms- spark. I looked at his hand, before slowly reaching out and taking it.

His fingers coiled around mine. There was no fear on my part. As unsure as I was, I couldn't help but trust him, and I followed him into the base, down the halls, past countless staring, murmuring humans.

"It's about time."

I shot Rika's smug smirk a dark glower, before pushing forward even more. Not that Sideswipe needed the urging. He was almost dragging me as it was.

As we entered the medical bay, I froze. Sideswipe's hand slipped out of mine, and he shot me a brief glance, before heading to the two bots on a nearby berth.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Two bots. Not one. I didn't even really notice the second bot, until I was able to process and accept the relatively crappy shape of the first._

_Yellow armor was torn, bent, dented, and there was a huge hole in the center of the chest. It didn't appear to be made by whatever had hurt him though, if the smaller, jagged shards of yellow metal all over the ground were any indication. Part of me wanted to rip into Ratchet. Sunny would _freak_ when he noticed the damage to his armor! What the bloody hell was Ratchet doing, to cause so much damage?_

_Of course, the moment I nearly shrieked that very question, he went into how the dagger used had some form of...shattering technology in it, and he had to rip open various areas quickly to stem the energon loss, and...etc etc etc._

_We were all just lucky Ratchet was such a terrific medic, I guess._

_Then, I laid eyes on the glow radiating from the hole in Sunstreaker's chest plates._

_It was eerie how Sideswipe's optics were illuminated by that glow, as he leaned over his brother's form. It was bright, _bright_ blue, all shades in existence, and then some, and it cycled._

_I felt drawn to it, like a moth to a flame. _

_I walked forward, feeling oddly numb. I wasn't in any pain, but the mental agony of knowing he wasn't in good shape right now, because _I'd_ insisted the Decepticons could be trusted._

_He looked...like he was sleeping, except for the odd tubes hooked up to his body, filtering energon into and seemingly out of his body. And, well, the hole in his chest plates. I couldn't help but trace my fingers over the ragged edges of the metal, and nearly shrieked as his body seemed to jolt, the odd machine he was hooked up to giving a rather staticky series of rapid beeps, before seeming to settle down as I pulled back._

_Ratchet gave me a dirty look. Sideswipe laughed shakily, muttering something I couldn't make out under his breath.. I stood there like a deer caught in the headlights._

_Then, Sunfire cooed._

_That's about when I realized Sunfire was curled up on Sunstreaker's throat cables, relaxing. She looked oddly at peace, all things considered. Then again, she _had_ taken a liking to the twins. _

_But as I stared down at them, letting Ratchet do whatever while I was lost in limbo, one thing occured to me, which I found I was asking a lot, now-a-days._

_...What now?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Oct 21, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	64. Bullseye

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : It's SO hot out! It's been hitting like around 36 with the humidex all week, and I can't even sit at my computer without sweating. Sorry about the late update guys, but it's just been near impossible to think straight with this heat.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

_**'You there, bro? We need you. I mean, more than you'd expect.'**_ A nervous bout of internal laughter. _**'Starscream... He...really hurt Bella, but...with words.'**_ A sense of confusion. _**'He made her think we'd never want her, that we're using her.'**_

The rush of rage was both expected and unexpected, but most definitely welcome. It was a soothing feeling, even as the hand curled around his tightened, almost painfully.

_**'I told her she was wrong, but she still doubts. She doesn't think we'd want her, because she was born human. Because she doesn't know half the things Cybertronian femmes her physical age would know. She thinks... Because of your protests, she sees that as proof of Starscream's words.'**_ He mentally recalled the day and time it all went down, gently pushing the memory files over the link.

It might not have been good to get his brother stirred up, so soon after a rather complex surgery to stabilize his spark and spark chamber, but... The truth was, he really _did_ need his brother. More then and there, than ever.

The steady hum of a crudely build machine alerted Sideswipe to Sunstreaker's steady spark-pulse, but with his pleas and files, the hum increased, Sunstreaker's engine rattling painfully. Sideswipe started when Ratchet growled and snarled at him in Cybertronian to stop, but he really _did_ pause when Bella stepped back, looking understandably frightened.

She held a tiny paintbrush in her one hand, gripping it so gently, it was really amazing. With the other, she held Sunfire, who was contentedly recharging in her adoptive mother's arms. Raising the yellow-tipped brush, Bella's optics shot to Sideswipe, and he tried to smile reassuringly to her.

Really. He tried.

But it probably came out more a grimace, because she stepped back again, as Ratchet moved to Sunstreaker's side.

"Slaggit, Sideswipe, I let you stay because you agreed not to cause any trouble!" Ratchet gently slipped his fingers into the center of Sunstreaker's newly painted chest plates, causing Bella to wince as the yellow paint was smeared, and opened them, gazing inside. "If you upset the work I've done to save your brother, so help me Primus, I'll weld you to the next berth over, and keep you sedated until he finally onlines, of his own free will!"

"I wasn't causing trouble! I was just telling him what happened!" His optics darted to Bella, who gave him an uncertain glance, before she lowered her facial plates. _**'It's like she's a whole different femme. I don't see her spark anymore, her ferocity and sarcasm. It's there, but it's buried. I...don't know what to do.'**_

Sunstreaker's hand tightened even more, as Ratchet worked on his internals. _**'P...Protect her.'**_ His 'voice' was weak, but firm. _**'A-And tell R-Ratchet to...get out of m-m-my internals. I...I-I can feel that.'**_

Sideswipe barked a quick, relieved laugh, and shook his head. When he realized Bella was staring at him incredulously, he smiled at her, a true, genuine smile this time. "He wants Ratchet out of his internal workings." He turned his gaze to Ratchet, and raised an optic ridge as the medic seemed to freeze, before slowly withdrawing. "You're actually _listening_?"

Ratchet grunted a little. "Only because he hasn't upset anything. _Yet_. Make sure it remains that way." With a huff, he allowed the plates to slide back together, before turning to Bella, his expression softening as much as it ever did, with the bot it was attached to. "My apologies for ruining your paint job."

"His health is more important." She shook her head, her gaze turning to the paintbrush.

Ratchet didn't know the details of what happened. Bella refused to tell him, and Sideswipe was too preoccupied with her and Sunstreaker to tell him. He knew _something_ had happened, though. This femme was far more subdued than normal, and it just didn't sit well with the old medic. He would have words with Prime, when time allowed.

But until then...

He moved out of the way, allowing her to approach Sunstreaker, albeit hesitantly, and return to her work.

_**'S-Something's...wrong with...Bella, isn't t-there?'**_ Sunstreaker's voice was alert, if groggy, as if he knew something was wrong, but was too out of it to pinpoint what. _**'S-S-Sides?'**_

Sideswipe read the longing in his brother's voice and squeezed back, before reaching out with his good hand, and gently taking the brush from Bella, startling her. "Take his hand." _**'I'm here, Sunny. We're all here.'**_ "Please. He needs us both." It was still a new concept to him, but one that felt...right.

She looked unsure, and he stared into her optics, trying to will her to see how sincere he was being. After a moment, she nodded, taking Sunstreaker's hand in her free one, and squeezing gently.

_**'S-Sides...'**_ The anxiety that had been growing along side the longing slowly faded into a contentment, tinged only with awkwardness and hesitation. Well, and a roaring, blinding, barely subdued rage at a certain Decepticon Seeker. _**'S-Sideswipe...'**_ He wanted to ask something, but the mech he was, was giving him a hard time about it, and Sideswipe could read that. _**'Please... Help her.'**_

_**'I... I'm trying, but I don't know how.'**_

_**'P...Prove Starscream wrong. L-Love her.'**_

Getting the implications of what Sunstreaker was talking about, Sideswipe looked over at the femme, sharply, noting the way her gaze was fixed solely on his brother, a look of pain in her optics. _**'You said it was too soon.'**_ He hadn't meant just 'love' her, but to finally create the bond their sparks longed for.

Sunstreaker was telling him to take her.

As a sparkmate.

But... Was now really the best time?

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

I wasn't a soldier. I wasn't Sunstreaker's twin. I wasn't versed in Cybertronian ways of comforting, and I most certainly wasn't a medic. Hell, I wasn't even a very good painter, but if there was anything I could to to help... Well, somehow, painting just ended up being the thing I'd chosen.

I was...torn. I was confused by Sideswipe's words, I was afraid to hope but couldn't help it. I was happy to have Sunfire back, if nervous about taking care of her. I was happy Sunstreaker was alive, worried something would happen to change that status.

And mostly, I was pissed.

I mean, I thought Sunny was supposed to be one of the most graceful and flexible and resourceful fighters out there. How was it a Decepticon landed such a fatal blow so easily? Granted, Sunstreaker probably didn't have a target painted on him with a 'hit here' sign tacked to his chest plates, but still... It seemed odd.

Unless maybe Sideswipe's words were true. If he was distracted by my abduction- But that didn't mean he'd care for me. He could just as easily see me as a charge, whom he failed to protect. Or a friend in danger.

I stared down at the smeared paint that Ratchet had ruined, in his hasty work on Sunstreaker, but I was more than aware I was being stared at. I wasn't oblivious to the concerned looks everybot who'd seen me has given me. I just...took to _pretending_ I was.

_I have to do something. They all think Screamer broke me, and he didn't._

Did he?

_No, he didn't._ My hand clenched around Sunstreaker's and I jumped a little when I felt him squeeze back ever so slightly. _He didn't break me. I can't let him... If I do, I'm not me anymore. But how do I prove I'm okay?_ I eyed the paint, fingers itching to fix it. After all, if it was the only thing I could really do to help, I wanted to do it right.

Then I felt my eyes narrow, as my annoyance flared up.

_I wouldn't _need_ to paint him, if he'd been more careful! I should... I should... I should paint a fragging bullseye on his freakin' chest for that!_

Of course, once the idea sank it's dental plates into my aft, it refused to fade, and I felt a delicious amount of revenge boil up. I looked up at Sideswipe, to see he seemed to be soothed quite a bit, before risking letting go of Sunstreaker's hand. It was awkward, I wasn't really comfortable holding his hand, all things considered, but I also didn't want to let it go.

I looked to where his fingers hooked around mine, relaxed yet a little bit tense at the same time. It was like some part of him, deep down, knew I was there, that his hand was in my own, and he didn't seem to be even trying to do anything about it. Considering this was _Sunny_, who didn't really care for being touched -At least, not by humans- could it mean something?

Ever so slightly, Starscream's face and voice faded from my mind.

I very slowly and reluctantly placed his hand back down on his chest plates, more than aware when Sideswipe's head snapped up. "I need to get a few things." _And that yellow twin will wish he'd never met me when I'm through with him. Hell hath no fury like a femme scorned._

"Things?" Sideswipe was on his wheeled feet, staring at me with alarmed optics. "What sort of things."

"Paints." I clarified, vaguely. I turned to Ratchet, whose hands were free.

"The others are arriving back as we speak, you may well be dragged into questioning outside this room, and I don't want you straining your wrist anymore. I already fear the damage may be permanent by this point." Ratchet vented, taking Sunfire from my weaker arm.

The pressure had been building in that arm, holding her, but she was light enough it wasn't bad. Having her removed, however, sent a small sigh through me, both of relief and disappointment. I didn't care to let her go, something about holding her soothed me, but at the same time, the pressure relieved itself, and I rubbed at my wrist gingerly before nodding.

"Hey, Sunny?"

I looked over at Sides, who also put Sunstreaker's hand down, and was straightening.

"I'm going to go with Bella for a minute, but we'lll be right back, okay?" I had a feeling he was speaking verbally more for my benefit than Sunny's. He glanced at me, and placed hand on his brother's shoulder, before walking around the berth. Then he raised an optic ridge at me. "Shall we?"

I hesitated, a little surprised he was actually leaving Sunstreaker's side to come with me. Sure, the yellow twin was better, healing nicely apparently, but that didn't mean I expected Sides to jump at the chance to get away, however briefly. I led the way out of the medical bay, and the trip was quiet for a bit. He walked a little behind me, and we passed many bots, who stopped and stared at me.

The more they stared, the more uncomfortable I got, and the more I sank down on myself.

"Hey, stop staring at my femme!"

Sideswipe's snarl had me jumping, and I spun to find him glaring at Barricade, who looked startled, but not the least bit cowed.

Barricade raised an optic ridge, before pointedly ignoring the silver twin and turning to me. "Glad to see you're not badly injured. Tell me you taught Starscream a lesson. Maybe pulled _his_ leg cables loose?" He smirked harshly, but it faded when I didn't reply. He tilted his head a little then. "He's done something to you." His voice still had it's rough edge, but gone was the derogatory tone he used to use when dealing with me. Instead, his optics narrowed, and he snarled. "What the slag did that fragger do to you?"

He stepped forward, but Sides cut him off with a flash, snarling right back. "None of your business, Decepticon. It's because of _you_ she was captured in the first place!"

I cringed and Barricade snarled. "Blackout and I had _nothing_ to do with that! In case you forgot, Autobot, it was Blackout to help identify and restrain him!" He abruptly winced when Sideswipe snarled again, a surprising reaction.

"It's because he slipped up my _twin almost died_!"

I moved forward without really thinking, and grabbed Sideswipe's arms. He went rigid and hissed, but didn't pull his arm free. I held on, knowing that it wouldn't take much for him to launch himself at Barricade, if I let him go. I prayed he was telling me the truth about how much he cared, and that my being there would keep him from doing something stupid.

I didn't blame them. I didn't want him to, either. I knew deep in my heart Barricade really _was_ a good bot, and not just because I knew about his deceased sister, either. If Blackout really hadn't betrayed us, I still had a glowing ray of hope for him, too.

Barricade eyed me warily. "It might not be a good idea to put yourself so near a dangerously unbalanced mech, Bella." He growled warningly. He looked for all the world like he wanted to pull me away from Sideswipe, and had to physically restrain himself, though he growled at the bot in question.

I stared back a long moment, blinking a bit, before tilting my head. _Is this 'Cade being a big brother?_

"I won't hurt her, 'Con." Sideswipe vented deeply and a good portion of the tension just seemed to melt out of him. "I would _never_ hurt her." His other hand came up and rested lightly on my arm, as he backed down.

"We were just going to get paint." I murmured, tugging on Sideswipe's arm with my good hand as I shot Barricade an apologetic look. He seemed to ignore it, in favor of eyeing Sideswipe oddly thoughtfully. "Weren't we?" I looked up to the silver twin, feeling my spark racing uncomfortably.

He stared right back, a strangely calm look on his face, before he nodded, and turned away from Barricade.

I didn't have to be a genius to know I'd just missed an internal exchange, and I made a face, before sighing. "Well?"

He pulled on me lightly, leading me down the hall and away from Barricade, who watched us a moment, before turning and walking off.

"What was that about?" I made to pull away from Sideswipe, and he let me go, until I was almost out of arm's reach. Then he reached out and took my hand, holding it tightly. A human gesture. Was it common for bots, too? Or was it just Sides seeming to prefer human habits? "Sides?"

"He told me to be good to you." He shrugged like it was no big deal. "So... What's the paint for?" I blinked, startled, and he glanced at me briefly. "We had plenty of yellow, the same shade as Sunny is now. You didn't _need_ paint, so..."

"I...was mad." I shrugged a little, realizing the vengeance had all but faded.

He nodded. "Mad's good." I stared at him oddly, wondering if he'd knocked something loose, and for the first time, he gave me a smirk. "It's good because it means the feisty Bella we love is still in there." He paused, abruptly, as did I.

"L..." I found myself blinking rapidly, my chest feeling hot.

Alien or not, he'd obviously versed himself in our culture well, because he slowly lowered his head, and I heard his cooling fans switch on. "Uh, yeah. Well, it's true." As he said the words, he lifted his head, his former confidence returning in full. "Even Sunny said so. He, uh..." It didn't seem possible, but his cooling fans sounded like they switched up a notch. He seemed to hesitate, looking more like a vulnerable young mech than a seasoned warrior. "Well, I'd really rather talk about it when Sunny can back me up." He abruptly laughed, nervously. "I guess it's me saying it isn't the right time right now, this time."

I nodded, though I honestly felt a little disappointed. I could guess at what he was getting at, but it didn't seem like he was going to go through with it now. The nagging doubts plagued me again.

"But hey."

I looked up, and froze when I felt warm lip plates pressed against my own. I stood there, frozen, until he pulled back with a smile.

"We do love you, Bella. Please believe me. We love you and want you as a sparkmate." He stared at me with such a sincerity, it filled me with a pleasant warmth. I felt like I could float. They were just words, but they meant more than I thought possible. Then, he smirked again. "Now, we needed paint?" He happily held my hand, almost swinging our hands as he led me to the supply closet. "You never _did_ tell me what it was for. You were angry?"

"I wanted to, well...paint a red and white bullseye on his chest plates." I shrugged a little, pausing when Sideswipe shot me an incredulous look.

"You want to _mess_ with his paint job? Are you glitching?"

Part of me wanted to sink down on myself, second guessing my work, but another part of me, the old me, stood tall. I straightened my shoulders and stared defiantly at Sideswipe. _If they love me, they'll love me regardless._ "_I_ happen to think a huge bullseye will look good on him." With that said, I turned my back to him and entered the supply closet, quickly locating and grabbing two cans of paint.

I walked past Sideswipe, who was still gawking in shock, and made my way to the medical bay. I would be lying if I said his words hadn't put the fight back in me, but the doubts still clung to the back of my mind, keeping the more timid me at the ready. Still, I felt a little like my old self, depite the aches and pains.

Speaking of which, Ratchet had already seen to me, and deemed me as non-critical. He'd applied a brace to my wrist, to help it heal and actually fears it will have to remain there permanently. After my wrist suffered so much damage, there's the very real possibility the damage is irreversible. Just another reason to hate Starscream.

I re-entered the medical bay to find Ratchet staring fondly at Sunfire, stroking her relaxed antennae, and smiled when he glanced up, startled. "Still asleep?" He nodded and I returned the nod, before setting up the paint next to Sunstreaker's still form. He'd be pissed as hell when he woke up, but maybe he'd finally get the hint. With a last look at his still form, I got down to work.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Artist._

_I'm not an artist by any means. I mean, I could paint and draw like the best of the humans; I think the abilities came with the newer, advanced processors, but I still lacked the realism in my work that Sunstreaker had. Still, it did wonders for a surprisingly well-drawn bullseye._

_It didn't help that Sideswipe came in, laughing hysterically at the new artwork, and even Ratchet chuckled slightly. Optimus came in to check on me, with the new recruit, and the boss bot nearly doubled over laughing, even as the new guy smirked. They knew what Sunstreaker's paint meant to him, and they knew what the bullseye would signify. Barricade wandered in later, despite Sideswipe's warning growl, and he smirked, but remained quiet, before turning and leaving with a shake of his head._

_That only reminded me, however, that I had questions about him, that had yet to be answered. The new guy, who popped back in for a general checkup after Barricade's visit, that is._

_Who was he, and could we really trust him? Why wasn't he in the second movie?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Oct 28, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	65. Talks and Interrogations

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Sorry about the once again late update, guys. I've been out in the heat a lot, recently, enjoying real life. Unfortunately, that's been leaving me pretty braindead when it comes to computers and remembering my updates. -_-' Well, here's the next one...

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_No matter how much time I spent around the twins, or how many times I heard it, Sunny screaming like a femme would _never_ get old! And I'm not talking Sunfire. If she ever screamed, I wouldn't be on my ass, laughing hysterically. I'd be brutally, slowly, and painfully disassembling whoever hurt her. Sunstreaker, on the other hand... Hell, even Optimus was laughing!_

_Then again, the big bullseye on the yellow twin's chest plates _was_ a hilarious sight! _

_It took him a few days to wake up, and then another day or two to apparently notice it. He was weak at first, and Ratchet forbade him to move. I couldn't set foot in the medical bay the entire time, more out of nervousness than anything else. I wasn't there, but I heard how he didn't move at first, or speak, or look at his chest. I heard, from 'Cade, how all the bots who went to see him had to struggle not to laugh their asses off. Then, I heard, with my own two audios, the high pitched shriek, three days later._

_I was on my ass, laughing, with Sunfire giggling in my hands._

_God, it felt good to laugh!_

_Too bad it couldn't last._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Several Days Later)**

I stood outside Prime's office, feeling more like a scolded child than anything. When Barricade stopped by to check on me, as I'd chosen to hide out in our quarters, since Sides was once again glued to Sunny's side, he told me that Sam spilled the details of what happened to Optimus, and a few other choice bots. That meant, Optimus knew what Starscream had said, which was more humiliating than anything.

I mean, Screamer could have ripped out my vocal lines, and it probably would have done less damage to me. I freaked out over words. I was _still_ freaking out over _words_. Did... Did it make me weak? Would he be disappointed? Angry? Ashamed of me?

Sides seemed more upset with Starscream than me. There's no telling Sunstreaker's reaction, since I was more or less in hiding from him. 'Cade was pissed, to put it bluntly. At me for believing the words out of Starscream's mouth, and at Screamer for being such a 'glitching douche'. There was...no way to tell how Optimus would take it.

Still, I couldn't stay here forever. I was getting more than enough confused and curious looks from the humans passing. Then, the door swished open, with Optimus standing on the other side, and if I still blushed, I could have. "Uh, hi." I was understandably worried about the upcoming 'interrogation'. He'd probably ask dozens of questions, and this time... This time I didn't have the answers.

"Bella." He nodded. "I was informed you were waiting out here."

I felt my eyes narrow and immediately began looking around. The first one I spotted, who ducked their head apologetically, was Jazz, and I felt my eyes narrow even more. _You just got on my bad side, little mech._ I thought darkly. As if sensing my thoughts, he turned and strolled off, whistling loudly until he was out of sight. Then I sighed, turning back to Optimus as my expression softened. "Yeah, I..."

"It's alright." His voice was soft, as he stepped aside, allowing me in. "I cannot personally understand your experience, but I can understand your hesitation. Sideswipe mentioned you acted as though severely tortured. Meek, quiet, almost ashamed and afraid. You seem hesitant around us; flighty. He informed me of what you said, of what Starscream said to you, but I would like to know the details through your own version." He closed the door, before walking to his own Autobot-sized desk.

That was probably another image I'd never get used to. Optimus Prime sitting at a desk.

His request had me shuddering. "I'd really rather not." I whispered, remembering the lust in Starscream's optics, and the way he not only tried to force himself on me, but also tried to kill me. I lowered my head and wrapped my arms around myself.

"Bella." Optimus stood, and I glanced up, seeing the concern in his optics. He approached and I stiffened, refusing to back away from the larger bot, even though I had the urge to do just that. "What did he do to you?"

It took three tries to swallow, though I had nothing to swallow. I felt cold, and my spark hummed harshly in my chest plates. "He... I... I..." I blinked, before holding out my damaged wrist. "I don't wanna talk about it. Or think about it." I almost shoved my wrist in his face. If he wanted the answers, this was the easiest and fastest way to give them to him.

As damaged as my wrist was, the one thing Ratchet deemed I could still do with it, was use the data transfer port. Everything else, with that arm, was restricted to light duty.

He hesitated, before very gently taking my wrist, connecting to the data transfer port. His optics went dim, and I could feel him probing my memories. I did everything possible to distract myself from remembering what he was undoubtedly seeing and hearing, but I didn't miss how his optics went wide, or his body rigid, and I felt like sinking even more in on myself.

All of a sudden, he cursed, violently. He spoke in his native language, but I didn't need to understand to know that the tone he used was curse enough. He disconnected from the port, and in a swift move that left me gasping, pulled me to his chest plates, holding me tightly. "Oh Primus, femme! Slag! What did he _do_ to you?" His deep voice boomed throughout the room, echoing darkly. "I've heard of truly despicable acts on femmes, but _this_!"

"He didn't... I mean, I... I fought him. I-"

"He _tried_! That's bad enough, Bella." He tightened his hold, one arm around my back, the other at the back of my head. "I cannot apologize enough for not protecting you better, or getting to you sooner."

"You had your hands full with Dead End." I shook my head against him.

His engine rumbled loudly, oddly angrily. "We should have offlined him instead of speaking to him! It was his betrayal that endangered a femme in the first place. If we'd offlined him and gotten straight to going after you, we could have saved you before-" He trailed off, slowly and reluctantly letting me go, before stepping back. "And perhaps we could have better protected Sunstreaker, as well." He lowered his head. "My hesitance to straight out offline Dead End caused you both great harm."

"We're alive, Optimus. Besides, that hesitation is who you are. Without it, you wouldn't be such a great and successful Prime." I didn't think about my words. I spoke how I felt, frowning, worried about how he clearly felt. "Without it, you would have offlined Barricade and Blackout, who haven't done anything to hurt you."

He nodded, almost hesitantly. "And without it, I would have offlined Soundwave."

I paused then, frowning. "Soundwave?" I felt my eyes widen then, and I gasped. "He saved me! Starscream was-" And my words choked off as quickly as they'd come. I raised my hands to my throat, gingerly. Though nothing had been damaged, it was still tender to the touch.

"Yes, I am aware." He nodded, his optics clouding over once again. "I am relieved to hear you've sustained no irreperable damage to yourself, other than your wrist. Soundwave approached us during battle, helping fight along side us, and then requested sanctuary. After what happened, we were understandably hesitant." He vented. "But Barricade vouched for him, and even Frenzy. Both bots who had joined us, helped us."

I nodded. Not too many fictions of my world had written him as a good character, but then again, only less than a fraction of them even had him _in_ the story, as anything other than a single cameo appearance. Half of them were out of character, and the ones remaining in character were very few in between.

"Sunstreaker is quite upset about the bullseye on his chest, and the issue with removing it." It seemed Optimus could tell this conversation was troubling me, and deemed to change the subject. Considering he now knew everything I knew, I suppose the interrogation part of the visit was over with. "You must have been quite angry with him."

I lowered my head and shrugged. "Yeah, but-" Suddenly, I paused, feeling my eyes narrow. "Wait, trouble _removing_ it?" I looked up sharply. "I didn't do anything to the paint. He should have been able to remove it easily."

Optimus' optics lit up then, and he nodded. "I see. Perhaps that is why Sideswipe was seen fleeing from Sunstreaker, earlier."

My head lowered again. "I wouldn't know. I haven't seen either twin, since Sunstreaker woke up." Not for a lack of trying on their part, either. Ratchet called to me, telling me Sunstreaker was awake. Even Sideswipe stopped by, trying to lure me out of the quarters.

That's more or less why I snuck off, chosing a currently abandoned storage unit as a temporary quarters. That, or I'd hide in Rika's room, whenever I saw her out and about with Jazz or Foster. She, too, was after me, demanding answers, but I just...didn't feel strong enough to deal with her. Not yet.

"Starscream was only trying to hit you were it would hurt the most." He gave me a sympathetic look. "I cannot say without a shadow of a doubt that he is wrong, but I do believe so, with all of my spark. We all care for you a great deal. We all love you. I believe, Sunstreaker and Sideswipe more than the others. Sideswipe disobeyed orders, to find you. He left Sunstreaker's side. You must know _that_ means something."

"I do. I just... My...My spark isn't sure _what_ it means. He told me they love me. I...I... I _think_ they want me to be their sparkmate, and I...want that. I just... I'm not sure it's what they _really_ want. Optimus, so very few stories from my dimension actually wrote the twins as ever settling down with a family. And even fewer wrote it, and kept them in character, being who they would be in the movies, or in my case, real life."

"Regardless. They love you, Bella. Deep down, you must know that."

"I do, it's just..."

"You are stronger than you give yourself credit for. Twice now, you have been captured by Decepticons, and yet made your way back to us. Twice now, and you are still you. You have not been corrupted, violated-" I knew he meant by forced sparkmerge, and not the data transfer. "And have not given up. Do not start now. Not when the twins need you the most, just as you need them."

I looked up at him, seeing the sincerity in his optics, and nodded. "It'll be hard." I straightened, feeling the old me nudging below the surface. _I'm strong. Even if he's right, if they don't want me, there's plenty other eligable mechs who probably would! And not the insane ones, either. How many human femmes fall in love, only to have their feelings thrown back in their faces, or the love not returned? And in most cases, they survive and move on._ The odd thoughts rolling through my mind served to give me confidence.

Deep down, I knew that if they proved not to love me, it wouldn't be _that_ easy to move on, but I could. I might have to, and it was a part of life. I had Sunfire now! I had to be strong, for her!

It wouldn't be easy, like I said. It would be hard to be me, with the nagging doubts in my head, but I had to try.

It was as if he could see my thoughts rolling around in my head, because Optimus nodded, offering a small smile. "We are all here for you, Bella. Now, I believe Rika's about to begin clawing at the door, if you do not go out and meet her" He winced then. "She is...far from happy."

I winced as well. "Tell me about it. I've been avoiding her like a leper." He gave me an odd look, and I shook my head in dismissal. _If anyone can understand and help..._ "Thanks, Optimus." I offered him a small smile, as he nodded. Turning, I walked to the door and opened it, stepping back as Rika burst in, red in the face and near hyperventilating.

"I've waited for-fragging-ever for you! Where the bloody slag have you been?"

I stepped back again at the venom in her voice, before raising an eyebrow. "Nice language combinations, but 'bloody slag'? Really?" I tried to keep my comments to myself, as I warily transformed down into my human form. "Heya Ri. Look, I'm sorry-"

"Sorry? You're _sorry_? Do you have _any_ idea how freaked out I was? I almost took off Jesse's head, and shoved potatoes up Jazz's tailpipe when they wouldn't let me _see_ you! You're _sorry_? Sorry doesn't begin to _cover_ it, missy! Not only did you get _captured_, but you _hid_ from me, after, too! You got some 'splainin' to do!"

She played it tough, but I could see the pain in her eyes, and I shook my head. "You'd have questions I couldn't deal with. I still can't deal with them." Folding my arms over my chest seemed like it was becoming monotonous, but at the same time, it gave me some strange measure of comfort. "Starscream tried to do things to me."

"What kinds of things?" There was a look of dawning horror. "Wait, didn't you say he liked you?"

Now I rolled my eyes. "Liked? No. More like obssessed. He wanted me. Probably still does, only now for offlining. Err, death, since he knows he can't get...well, you know, from me." I gave her a look.

Her eyes narrowed dangerously, and I stiffened a little, getting an inkling what she was going to ask next.

"Did the bugger try?" Her words were a low snarl, and when I couldn't do anything but look away nervously, she growled. "He did! He tried! Just how _hard_ did he try? Did he try to force himself on you?"

Just as quickly as her tirade began, a giant metal hand swooped down to grab her up, causing her to yelp. I recognized the paint immediately, and felt my eyes widen in horror as Sideswipe turned the snarling human femme towards him, with one of the darkest glowers on his facial plates.

Hell, it was identical to the one Sunny was wearing behind him!

Then, my eyes widened even more. _Wait, Sunny?_

Yellow twin was standing behind the once again red twin, both looking enraged. Sunstreaker was growling, even as Sideswipe fixed his glare on Rika.

"What's this about that slagger trying to force himself on _our_ Bella?" His own deep voice was a low rumbling snarl. Abruptly, he stiffened, his expression going blank, and I didn't miss how quickly Optimus stepped in, forcibly removing Rika from his grip, before he suddenly slammed his hand closed in a tight fist, causing her to 'eep' at the fact she'd _just_ been held in that grasp. "He did _what_?"

Sunstreaker let out an animalistic snarl, optics flashing completely to crimson, and I took several steps back, feeling my heart slam in my chest plates, in terror. I hated that color now. I could handle it in Barricade and Dead End, because they never had the traditional Decepticon hostility in their gazes, when they glanced at me. At least, not anymore. But the hostility in the twin sets of now crimson optics before me had me holding my breath, whimpering in fright, before I found myself picked up in a hand and cradled to a chest with Rika.

"That is enough!" The order was stern, dark, and powerful.

Yet the twins still took a good couple of minutes before their eyes flickered back to a dark blue. Neither twin was pleased, they were snarling like rabid animals, but some semblance of sanity returned to them. It was Sunstreaker who held out his hand, pointedly, and waited.

It was a few moments before Optimus handed me over, albeit reluctantly, and I curled apprehensively in Sunstreaker's palm, watching him through wide eyes. He glowered down at me, but something changed. His expression softened about as much as you'd expect with Sunny, and he pulled me to his chest. With a flash, his human holographic form was seated, straddling his wrist, and before I could blink, I was being held tightly in two human arms, against a warm, hard chest.

"Slaggit femme! I can't believe that, after everything, you believe that overused pile of scrap metal!" He growled. "I don't lie, and I don't mis-speak my intentions." Then he paused. "In this sort of thing, anyways. I only threw a fit before, because I thought it too soon, and I was...embarrassed by my own anxiety. I had no idea what you'd say, and I worried." It looked like it pained him to say it, too.

I lowered my head as he hugged me to him, and closed my eyes. It felt so nice to be here, and I wanted so badly to hope. Starscream's words were fading from my mind with every passing moment, but I knew it wasn't that easy to forget what he'd said, the doubts his words inspired, let alone what he'd _done_.

It took me several long moments until I realized Rika was cursing violently, and that with every passing moment her cursing was getting quieter. We were moving.

"You slagging junk heaps! Bring her back here! I did not wait this freakin' long only to have you hog her to yourselves! I swear, I'll strip your paint in spots and wax 'I'm a dork' on your backs!"

"Just you try it, femme, and you'll wake up shaved bald!" Sideswipe called back, a dark promise in his usually lighter voice.

She fell quiet, I'm not sure if it was due to the shock of his answer, or because she knew it was futile to argue, and we continued on.

"Where are we going?" I looked over at holographic Sunny, who was currently running his hand through my hair, like it was suddenly quite fascinating.

"We need to talk." It was all he said, but there was something in his voice that hinted to things I couldn't begin to imagine.

And I'd be lying if I said a shiver didn't run down my spine at the lower tone to his voice.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Talk? _

This_ is what they called 'talk'? Damn! Remind me to get them an English dictionary, super sized, sometime. This sure as hell wasn't any 'talking' I could name. Then again, this could be giving a whole new meaning to 'body language'._

_I was taken to their quarters, the sunset-y colors familiar and oddly soothing to me. I was then put down and practically ordered to transform. I did so, thinking they were going to let into me. I mean, I'm sure I had it coming, but still.. Imagine my surprise when they moved forward, and I found myself embraced. They began telling me how much they loved me, Sunstreaker's words coming with more hesitance and uncertainty, but more passion._

_They trailed their hands over my arms and sides, the feelings of the trusted touches sending thrills through me, and I suddenly realized exactly what they had planned. Starscream's words and touches faded from my mind as Sides stroked my back, and Sunny gently caressed my still tender throat cables._

_It wasn't until one of them touched the seam in my chest plates, that I reacted._

_And unfortunately, it wasn't in the way I'd planned, either._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Oct 31, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	66. Dark Promises

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Ow, ow, OW!_

_Did I ever mention Ironhide was a tough teacher? If the twins got so bothered by half the mechs even _looking _at me, and trust me, they didn't really appreciate it, then why were they okay with Ironhide beating the slag out of me? Training? No, this wasn't training. This was torture, plain and simple._

_Then again, maybe it had something to do with the fact that neither twin looked comfortable around me anymore. Try as I might, I couldn't find a way to excuse my harsh reactions the other night, and now they treated me like glass. They didn't touch me, without first giving me long, thoughtful looks, like they were gauging my response. Then there's the fact they never again brought up sparkmating._

_I mean, I know my reaction was bad. On the upside, I didn't scream in terror, or start attacking anyone, but I sincerely doubt jerking out of their grasp and shouting at them 'Don't touch me!' was taken well._

_Sunny went to his normal, colder self, shooting me masked glances every once in a while. Sides just kept giving me small, reassuring smiles, insisting it was okay, without going into details._

_Then I find out I'm set up for intense battle training from Ironhide, with more complex moves from the twins, and speedy getaway maneuvres from both the triplets _and_ the twins. Let's not get into the fact it was made all the worse by the new weakness in my wrist, that Ratchet, unfortunately ascertained was not going to fade. The damage was permanent, it seemed._

_Why me?_

_Ironhide, the twins, the triplets... Hell, even Ratchet and Boomer had been giving me rough lessons of field medics, in case I got hurt in the field._

_Was it really all just to train me better? Or was it just a ploy to make sure I was too tired to find those two and _try_ to talk to them? Because honestly, each day I got my aft handed to me, I found Starscream's words slowly slipping back into my head._

_Deny it all they wanted, but right now, they weren't acting all _that_ determined to have me as a sparkmate. You'd think, with everything I'd read and heard, they'd be chasing after me, trying to get me used to the simplest of touches, and trying to work their ways so deeply into my spark, I'd never fear them, no matter what._

_Some days, I found the First Prime to be more than right. I regretted all this, and wanted nothing more than to go home._

_- Bella_

* * *

**(A Couple Weeks Later)**

"No." I shook my head at Ironhide, who narrowed his optics at me. "I'm not afraid of you anymore, cannons-for-brains, so give it up." It might have sounded harsh, but I was tired of all this...this... Whatever this was. "I don't feel like training today. My wrist hurts, my side still hurts from where you kicked me. I'm exhausted. And you just want someone's aft to kick. Well, last I heard, the twins were running around freely. Pick on them for once." Pouting, I crossed my arms over my chest.

His glare faded, and he eyed me thoughtfully. "When was the last time you got a decent recharge?"

_Before I became Cybertronian._ I thought, shrugging silently. "How's the integration going with Soundwave?" It was a topic change, and I knew he'd see right through it -as his glare proved- but I hoped he'd care enough to go with it.

He frowned, his glare darkening, before he shrugged. "It's going." I gave him a look, and he vented. "As far as I know, most bots have settled around Barricade and Blackout, but since he's new, Soundwave's still a bit of an issue." He looked at me a long moment, again, and I could have given anything to know what he was thinking. "Fine. You can have today to rest, but we pick up your training tomorrow." Then he cracked his metallic knuckles and smirked. "As far as the twins go, however-"

"They're fair game." I felt my own eyes darken, and glanced over at the base. _They've been more or less avoiding me, whenever they can. They pull their pranks on their own, do their chores, and actually _volunteer_ for more, just to stay busy. When they can't, they're so quiet._

"It'll be okay, Bella."

I glanced back at Ironhide. "Hmm?"

"The twins. We know what happened, we've all heard about what that slagger did to you. They just...don't know how to handle it." He vented again, sharply, and shook his head. "They want to fly into a rage every time they're near you, because they remember what he did to you. But at the same time, they can't, because they know it frightens you. They want to be with you, but they're afraid of hurting you."

"Geez, what are you? Their marriage counsellor?" When he gave me a confused look, I felt the grimace twisting my features. "I've been trying to find some way to talk to them, and they avoid me like I've got some sort of intergalactic crabs or something." He paused, clearly looking up the term, before literally planting his face into his palm and choking. "Yeah, yeah, bad mental image. Still, my point is, they avoid me, and here you come along with all the answers."

"Like you said, the twins are fair game." He reminded me, dryly. "I might be more like the 'shoot first, ask questions later' bot you seem to have read about." Then he grinned, ferally. "But I put it to good use."

I could only blink at him as he waved, before stalking off. "Wow. Note to self. Do not prank or in any way piss off Ironhide." I heard him chuckling as he moved further towards the base. I hesitated, looking at the base itself.

Bumblebee was watching over Sam and Mikeala, who for the moment, seemed to be having a bad day. Mikeala ignored Sam's presence, filing her nails as she sat on a large crate, sunning herself. Sam was at the bottom of the crate, leaning against it and looking troubled.

_Is this a part of the reason Mikeala called him to break up with him in the movie?_ I wondered silently, tilting my head as Bee groaned and shook his head, before glancing at Jazz who joined him. _But no, they -probably- didn't come to the base to live here, like this. Is this something else?_ I frowned, watching as Jazz lifted a claw to Mikeala, who quickly gathered her things and stepped onto his outstretched hand.

Before she could disappear though, Bumblebee handed her a tiny rose. She stared at the bot in shock a moment, before Bumblebee shrugged and pointed down at his charge. Even from my distance, I could make out his apolgizing to her, telling her how much he adored and cherished her.

I sighed, even as she seemed to soften and lowered to give him a hug. _How long will 'I cherish you' or 'I adore you' work, though?_ It was only a matter of time before she got tired of his excuses, either demanding he say 'I love you' or leaving him. _Maybe I should have a talk with him_. Then I smirked. _Or maybe I should talk to his parents, and have _them_ talk to him._

After all, if I said anything it could go in one ear and out the other. If _they_ said anything, he'd listen and do something, just to make sure they never had to sit down and talk about it again. After all, I doubt he was in the market for a replay of the 'Sam's Happy Time' conversation they'd had in the first movie.

With a small laugh, I started towards the base. Boomer was chasing down Epps as usual. The bot didn't talk much, but seemed to like the man's music, and considering Epps didn't have a guardian before the little Mazda's arrival... Well, they took to each other well. Epps laughed, before racing off, causing his guardian to give chase, and I rolled my eyes as I stepped within base perimeters again.

_Now what?_ I hadn't been kidding about the pain, but I really didn't want to deal with Ratchet. The brace _had_ ended up more permanent than I would have liked, and it did little for the pain. Unfortunately, Ratchet was able to scan the area and told me I'd probably have pain for several Earth months. The repeated damage I took to that wrist had done something to the pain receptors there, or something. So back flips and cartwheels across the base wasn't a good idea.

Suddenly, I watched as Boomer skidded to a stop and transformed on the spot, the same time as Ironhide paused in marching back to the base, and both Jazz and Bumblebee froze. I still didn't have the damn internal communications -Ratchet said it was still too early and would overwhelm my processor- so I had no idea what was going on, but when Ironhide grunted and shifted directions, without pulling out his cannons, I figured it couldn't have been bad.

_**Message from Starfleet... Incoming... New arrival...**_

I looked to Bumblebee, who nodded at Jazz, before waving at the kids and transforming. Without a word, Sam and Mikeala obediently got in, and they drove into the hangar.

"New arrival?" I glanced to Jazz, who nodded. Then I thought for a moment, and it didn't take long to figure out who it had to be. "Jolt?"

Jazz paused, tilting his head. "We dunno. Can't identify da signal." He shrugged though, pointing to the group of bots collecting on the main tarmac, like it was no big deal. "We'll find out soon 'nough." He grinned, before waving and sauntering over to them.

I watched as numerous bots gathered, Optimus talking to them in their native language, but when I saw Sunstreaker and Sideswipe joining him, I felt my eyes narrow. _Again. Every slagging time-_ Something snapped, and I hissed. I broke into a run, passing Jazz. Barely giving heed to Optimus' surprised look, or the way several bots glanced at me in shock, I leapt into the air.

"Oof!"

"Hey! My paint! Watch the paint!"

I grunted, as it felt like I slammed into a brick wall. Actually, a brick wall probably would have been more forgiving. Let this be a lesson kids. Metal is as hard and unforgiving as it looks.

Regardless, I almost snarled. "Oh, no you don't! You slagging cowards run every _fragging_ time I have a moment of free time! Not this time!" The yellow figure whose back I clung to went rigid, and all his bitching about his precious paint stopped cold. I glanced to Optimus, who looked torn between being amused and just...startled. "Take the other twins! These two are _mine_ today!" I probably shouldn't have _ordered_ the leader of the Autobots, but... Something in my tone must have convinced him, because he shook his head, clearing his throat, before nodding, and several of the bots actually stepped away from me.

Although I didn't miss the sound of Barricade laughing his ass off in the background.

"Alright then. Sunstreaker, Sideswipe, I charge you with Bella's protection and safety."

Neither bot argued. Actually, _I_ was a little surprised to see the approval in Sideswipe's optics, but when I shot him a dirty look, he lowered his head, almost sheepishly.

I clung to Sunstreaker's back, arms around his neck and legs around his waist, as he turned and walked back into the hangar. We were the victim of more than one snicker, and even Rika was giggling her ass off, and I just flipped each and every one of them off.

"Cling on, anyone?" Rika snickered, before Epps doubled over laughing, along with Foster.

Star Trek referance. I got it, though I wasn't a fan. I shot her a look. "Dorks, anyone?" He stuck my metal tongue out at her, before clinging even tighter to Sunstreaker as he stalked out the other exit to the room. "And don't you even _think_ of trying anything." I whispered in his audio, feeling his steps faulter. "I'm not above rewiring your internal workings."

"You wouldn't know what you're doing." He called my bluff.

I smirked evilly, watching as Sides glanced at me and shuddered. "Do you really think that will stop me?" Sunny almost tripped over his own two feet, but managed to catch himself on Sideswipe's arm, and they both glanced at me, almost nervously, before they made it to our quarters.

I took a deep breath, before climbing off Sunny's back, shimmying my way lower until I felt him shiver and jerk a little, and carefully placing my feet on the ground. "We...are going to talk." I spoke grimly. I entered the room ahead of them, to the makeshift giant cradle-like thing on the wall, where Sunfire was napping peacefully. "And if you two think of running, it'll tell me you really _are_ cowards." I frowned at them, letting the hard mask fall, so they could see how I really felt inside.

They stared at me, before entering, and the door slid shut behind them. Then we just stared at each other, silently.

"I thought you wanted to talk." Sunstreaker turned his head to the cradle, folding his arms over his chest as he gazed down at Sunfire.

"You really _are_ an ass." I muttered darkly, reiterating what I'd said some time ago. Frowning, I folded my own arms over my own chest. "For someone who insisted you wanted me as a sparkmate, you don't seem to be trying all that hard." Their heads shot to me, their optics widening in disbelief. "You want me _so_ badly that one bad reaction sends you both running for the hills? Gee. I feel _so_ loved." I snarked, rolling my optics.

"That's not it." Sideswipe shifted, frowning.

"What? You're suddenly afraid to be around me, because you'll break me?" I glared at them both. "You wanna skin Starscream for what he did to me, but don't dare look the least bit pissy because I might bolt and head for the hills myself?" They shot me incredulous looks. "What? Didn't think Ironhide would talk? Well, when I basically told him to frag off, I was tired of training, and in pain, he spoke up."

Sideswipe stepped forward. "You're in pain?"

"No, of course not! The throbbing in my side and wrist are nothing!" I snapped. "I just said it to get him off my back. I lie like that. All the time."

He vented. "Bella-"

"Don't you 'Bella' me! You're not any better than Sunstreaker, you know! You either want me, or you don't! Just because I'm having a hard time recovering from what Starscream did to me, doesn't mean I never will, but you don't seem to be trying very hard. You're not even trying to help me! What _do_ you want? Really? Because if I'm _that_ big a pain, I can take Sunfire and leave! Hell, if it's _her_ you want, tell me! We humans _do_ have this thing called 'split custody' you know!" My eyes burned more and more with each word, and I could feel myself growing hysterical. What if that _is_ what they wanted?

_No, I can't think like that._

Speaking of Sunfire, her whimpers reached my ears, and I turned immediately, picking her up. I cradled her to my chest, feeling her shivering, and glowering at the mechs.

They, for their own part, looked like I'd just sucker punched them. Sideswipe leaned heavily against the wall, and Sunstreaker looked startlingly vulnerable. A look, no matter how many times I saw it, I would never get used to it.

"We've spent countless hours searching your worldwide web, learning all we could about your planet. We know what 'split custody' is, and we don't want that." I was staring at Sunfire, and hoped that the lowered position of my head hid my expression. "We want you both. In our lives. You as our sparkmate and Sunfire as our sparkling."

I glanced up to see Sideswipe walking over, almost hesitantly.

"We are just not...accustomed to caring for a femme in your situation. We're not...sure how to handle it." He admitted, sadly. "We want to help, but we don't know how. We looked up your worldwide web, and it gave all sorts of forms of help, but 'Group Therapy' isn't really an option for an intergalactic being." His lips trembled, but he seemed to be trying to remain serious. "Most of the time, they suggested that giving it time helped. We thought...we'd give you time."

"And in the meantime, I'm feeling unwanted and broken." I whispered, rubbing Sunfire's back as her little antennae waved back and forth, and she snuggled into my chest plates. Listening to their reasons, I admit, I snapped for no reason. I mean, this is the _twins_ we're talking about. Them being awkward, and defensive, and avoiding me... It was all something you'd probably expect from the twins in the Transformers movies and cartoons.

I shouldn't be comparing them, I know, but it's hard not to when you're trying to understand something, and you only have so much to go on.

Okay, maybe Sides would be a little more understanding, but Sunstreaker just didn't open up too well. At least, that I know of and have seen.

A movement in my peripheral caught my attention, and I glanced up as a set of large yellow arms wrapping firmly around me, carefully pulling me to an equally as firm and strong chest. Then I felt more arms surrounding me from the back, and a chest being pressed against me there.

I stiffened, momentarily, but relaxed. This was a comforting hold, and I shifted Sunfire up higher, into the crook of my neck, so I could press for firmly against Sunny in front of me.

"You are wanted. We've said it before, and we'll say it again."

"Slaggit femme, what do you want from us?" Sunstreaker pulled me to him more firmly. "We try to mate with you, and you scream at us." I stiffened, and he growled. "And don't think I blame _you_ for that. Starscream's spark _is_ mine!" He snarled, before pulling me even tighter, his fingers ghosting over my back in a surprisingly tender way that made me shiver. "But if you are not ready to mate-"

"I..." I eyes darted back and forth, taking in every line and crevice on his chest plates. "I want to..." It was the truth, too. I did want to. As a human, I adored the twins, because they were everything a girl could get into. Sunny was the bad boy all the girls loved. Sides was the cocky good guy. They were heros, but broody and vain. Loyal to each other, having more depth of character than a _lot_ of the human guys out there. "It's just... I'm..." Could I even use the word 'virgin' with Cybertronians? Starscream had _tried_, but it hadn't gotten very far. "I've never..." I wanted to mate with them, be their sparkmate, have a family, but I was _so_ scared and nervous.

Starscream's words were faint echos in my head, but they were there, nonetheless.

I felt a nuzzle against my throat, and warm breath. "You've never..." He was hinting for me to continue.

I shivered, feeling my cooling fans switch on. "Um, google 'virgin'." I ducked my head, feeling Sunfire shift in my hold. I don't think I'd ever been more embarrassed. This was _not_ a talk I wanted to have. Thankfully, Sunfire was a welcome distraction. Glancing down at her, I watched her little arms curl around my thumb, and she dozed lightly. I felt the twins shift then, hearing their own fans switching on, even as Sunstreaker went rigid, and Sideswipe's fingers curled around my stomach.

Slowly, Sunstreaker pulled back, his optics bright. "I see." His voice seemed deeper, rougher, and he nodded. "Then this is a very bad idea." He stepped back, breaking the hold his presence seemd to have on me. But before I could sink on myself, hurt, he shot me a look. "I'm not sure my control can handle being so close to you. And I'd rather not risk harming you with the images of your unusual television programming looping in my processors."

"Huh?" I frowned, confused.

"Oh, you mean the porn?" Sides spoke oh so casually about it, but _I_ went rigid, feeling my eyes widen with horror. The fact they were discussing it in front of a sparkling never crossed my mind. My brain just stopped as soon as they _mentioned _it. "Hey, yeah! We designed our holographic forms to mimic that of the humans as closely as we possibly could. It would be..." I felt his hold tighten on me briefly, before he stepped away, too, clearing his throat. "Uh, _interesting_ to investigate that, but not now."

Sunstreaker smirked then, and I shivered again. Gone were the doubts they wanted me. I could see it in their optics. "No, not now." He agreed, his smirk turning downright lecherous in a way that, if he'd been anyone else, I probably would have slapped them for looking at me like that. Or ran for the hills. "But later. We have all the time in the universe."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Dark promises._

_There were the bad kind, like Starscream in general. I knew he'd come after me again, or us in general. He wasn't happy with me leaving, and Soundwave didn't offline him, for whatever reasons I couldn't possibly understand. Then there's the fact I _still_ didn't feel Sunstreaker was out of danger. Maybe I was paranoid, but...no, actually... I think I was just paranoid. Especially when it came to Sunny and Sides, but I didn't want to take the risk._

_I mean sure, I worried about Mikeala's future, but Sunstreaker's was most forefront on my mind._

_Let's not even get into the war during the second movie. I'm pretty sure, with the Autobots having Sam's shard, Jetfire, and knowing where everything was, the movie wasn't really going to happen. Especially with the key bot, Soundwave, on our side and not in space. Or the third movie, which I didn't know enough about to really stop._

_Everyone was in danger. Mikeala, who was supposed to die at some point, due to circumstances I had no idea about. The Fallen was still out there, so Optimus was still in danger. As long as we could keep the Decepticons off guard, though, they might not realize what they'd have to do to nearly win against the Autobots. Sam would always be in danger. As some of the last femmes, myself and the triplets would be hunted, likely. _

_There was also the chance two of the triplets could still offline, too._

_But then, there were good 'dark promises'. Like the one in Sunstreaker's face and voice. As if our talk opened up a door I hadn't even _seen_ before, I suddenly realized what Sunstreaker's 'looks' were about, and it warmed me to the core, causing my spark to tingle oddly. Sideswipe was a little more touchy-feely, though hardly inappropriately._

_I knew, that if I really worked on getting past what Starscream had done to me, they'd fulfill their end. We'd mate, be a family, and...undoubtedly, 'explore' the differences in Cybertronian and human mating rituals._

_I think I'm starting to channel Sunstreaker here, because that thought alone was enough to make me want to jump his protoform, every time he glanced my way._

_Great. And I thought things were tense before._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Note** : I understand I've repeatedly used 'chose' instead of 'choose'. I've only recently come to realize that as a spelling mistake, but as I've done it over the course of the entire story, and don't have the patience to go back and correct every chapter, it will remain as is for now. Thank you to the reviewer who pointed it out. I'm making changes in my more current muses as we speak. Unfortunately, those are Vampire Diaries muses, thanks to the ever so perfect Ian Smolderhalder. *Sighs dreamily*.

**Written** : Nov 7, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	67. Another Update

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : For those wondering, the second movie barely comes into play here. I've been working on changing things so the way everything ends up working out is totally different. It's going to go way AU, I think. Hell, the big baddie's not even going to be Cybertronian. Or human! ... I'll leave it up to your imagination. ;)

Sorry about the slow updates, it's been hot as hell here, making it hard to sometimes think straight, and I'm gearing up to go to FanExpo in Toronto, so my mind's on that (and my Vampire Diaries fanfictions). Speaking off... Sorry, but while I'm gone, I won't have access to internet. That means there likely won't be updates for a couple of weeks. Things aren't yet set in stone, though, so we'll see.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I spent some more time, training. Ironhide just wasn't happy until I was about as black and blue as a Cybertronian could get. The upside, the twins were nicer to me now. They didn't get all flighty around me anymore. They were still hesitant in touching me, wary of pushing me past what I was comfortable with. The thing about that was...I was okay with their touches. I mean, sure, I was nervous and a little scared, but Starscream wasn't them. Either of them. I was away from him now, and I was safe._

_I might or might not react badly, but there was only one way to tell. And if I was being honest, there was only really one way to move past what he'd said and done. Now, if only we could work on that._

_A couple weeks after things began to settle down, and I really began to feel like a part of the team, one with them. It was weird, all things considered, but nice. Jolt had finally arrived, but was quieter than I'd expected. More shy and withdrawn. He was good friends with the twins, and opened up around them, but nearly went silent around the femmes, and really just went quiet around the other mechs. He was fascinated by the humans, though, watching them carefully and asking all kinds of questions about them._

_My mind began to return to the issue of the movie, and I realized with a start, I'd been here quite some time. That date was moving ever closer, and there were still things to do. What about the key? Well, all things considered, it was probably best left where it is, for the time being. If it's never found, it can't be fought over. The machine? The bots stated they were keeping surveilence on it. The Decepticons? Apparently they moved their base._

_All the expected new arrivals had already arrived, and the Autobots were working on Cybertronian defensive systems in orbit around Earth. They stated it would radiate a Cybertronian signature that only the Autobots would be able to pick up on, drawing any nearby closer to us. Everything that could be done more or less had been._

_Well, maybe except for one area, that I didn't really think of, until Optimus brought it up._

_Guess what? It's time for another trip home._

_...You'd think they'd learn their lessons the first three times..._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(?)**

Starscream scowled at the night sky. They'd retrieved two more arrivals, but the relatively good news wasn't even noticed. He glared up, zooming on the lights in the sky that his sensors told him were satelites. _Soundwave was _supposed_ to be up there._ He snarled lowly, his engine gunning painfully as he hissed and clutched at his still injured side.

_Soundwave_ will_ pay for his betrayal._ Slowly, his head turned to the other Decepticons, and his optics narrowed. _I've been betrayed twice already. How can I even trust the others now?_ He sneered at their backs, before turning back to the sky, though keeping his sensors to max all around him. _Slaggin' femme started it all! I _will_ have revenge on her!_ His hands curled, his processors replaying how her throat felt under his grip.

"Starscream, sir!"

He waved off the nameless bot calling to him. His optics remained on the sky, and narrowed further as he noticed a flash of blue electricity. It was nearly invisible, but his optics picked up on it, before they widened in realization. "Those fragging Autoscum are creating an orbital sensor net!" He hissed, straightening with a glare. Then he smirked. "Thundercracker! Skywarp! I have a mission for you!"

They straightened and exchanged a look, before walking over.

"If they think they're going to win, they've got another thing coming." Turning his back to the sky, the Decepticon leader faced his trine mates. "We're going to piggyback a signal off their little sensor net to alert the other Decepticons to our position. I want you two to work on masking the signal so they can't tell what we're doing."

They nodded and saluted. "Yes, sir!"

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

"We don't know it's going to work." My thumbs stroked over Sunfire's arms as she sat happily in my lap. A single glance out the window told me Ironhide, Jolt, and Boomer were hot on our heels, and I glanced up to see Sideswipe in front of us. He was still red, but seemed to have trouble deciding between a Ferrari or a Corvette. Half the time, he was one. The other, he was the other. It was annoying, because I kept getting confused whenever I saw him, but at the same time, I couldn't complain too much. After all, both forms were smoking hot!

"We don't know that it's not." Sunstreaker countered. "It worked before, did it not?"

"I don't get what we're looking for. I mean, I already updated everyone on the last 'update' I got. It more or less covered everything _I_ feel was important. What else is there? I mean, the other bots won't arrive for a while, and there's no guarantee to who they are, other than Silverbolt. The new villain, I _heard_, is Shockwave." I sighed and shook my head, frowning. "And besides, with the way everything is changing, there's no telling _what_'s gonna happen now."

"There is only one way to find out, isn't there? Besides, we get to spend time together." I felt the seatbelt tighten ever so slightly as Sunstreaker's engine purred softly.

Blushing, I giggled a little. "You know, for a bot so nasty to other people, you can be surprisingly sweet." I shook my head. "It's so odd seeing this other side of you. I mean, I know you had it in you, it's part of what I love about you. It's just so..." I stared out the window, thinking. "Well I guess I ever expected to see this side of you directed at _me_."

"Why not?"

I laughed a little. "I _was_ human. I was born in a world you didn't exist in. When we first met, you loathed my guts." I paused then and raised an eyebrow. "And all things considered, you _loathed my guts_!"

There was a low chuckle. "When we met, I wanted nothing more than to end your existence. I saw humans as lowly and weak."

"Slimy. Disgusting. Tiny. Organic." I trailed on, causing the engine to sputter with muffled laughter. I stared at the dash, really shocked Sunstreaker was opening up, was _laughing_ with me. Not laughter from a prank, or something. Just...laughing. It seemed so out of character. I knew it wouldn't last long. It never did with him, but I knew it was a part of him.

"Very true, but you showed me how resilient, dedicated, loyal, and shockingly strong and resourceful they can be." There was a long pause then. "But I still think they're disgusting, and don't want them touching me."

_That_ was more the Sunny we all knew, and I laughed freely, nodding in agreement. "I'm glad to see Sunny's still in there. I was about to ask who you were and what you did with him."

There was another pause. "But I _am_ Sunstreaker. I've never been anyone else, and I don't believe there are any other bots even vaguely resembling me."

I shook my head again, as we pulled into my apartment. "Never mind. Anyways, I've been gone for like...well, forever. How is my apartment not cleaned out, or owned by someone else?"

"Secretary Keller has been paying for it under your name."

_Oh yeah, the entire building is government owned._

"Optimus informed him that you might need access to your things, and explained the circumstances in why it was best to leave the stuff in your own apartment."

"That had to be a...fun talk." I winced a little, before looking down at Sunfire, who was staring out the window in fascination. "Um, what do we do about her?" I wanted to show her the world, but the world just wasn't ready for her yet.

"Leave her here. I will keep her safe."

I shot the dash board a look. "Yeah, because I doubted your ability to completely obliterate any Decepticons that threaten your baby girl." I put in sarcastically, rolling my eyes. Sighing, I shifted Sunfire to the passenger seat and leaned over to brush my nose against hers, causing her to coo and giggle. "Now you stay here. We'll be right back, I promise." I placed a kiss against her antennae and they waved gently.

With a smile to her, I backed out of the Ferrari and patted it's hood gently, before running my fingernails gently in the seam at the edge. Abruptly there was a flash, and even as the Ferrari shivered, a hand grabbed mine away from the area.

"We may be made of metal, but we are very sensitive to touch." There was a heat in his eyes that warmed me to the core, and made me realize at the same time that I must have been touching a _very_ sensitive area on his body. It made me recall the way he reacted when I'd washed him, before, and suddenly I began to ask all kinds of mental questions about just _why_ he reacted the way he did. I had a good idea though, and it made _me_ shiver.

He eyed me for a long moment, before leaning forward. The look on his face was serious, but the intensity in his eyes had me meeting his lips for a brief yet intense kiss. As he pulled back, there was a thoughtful look on his face. "Earth mating is most definitely different from our own, but...interesting. I...like kissing."

I laughed a little and nodded, stepping away as he released my wrist. "Good, because I like it, too." With a smile, I turned and walked to the apartment door, frowning a little at the weight of the keys in my hand. _It feels like forever..._ I glanced at the door, the chairs on the porch, even the curtains through the window. Opening the door, I stepped inside, and my frown deepened. _It doesn't feel the same anymore..._ The smell was familiar, but not anymore. Everything seemed to be in place, but I just didn't feel comfortable here anymore.

Looking around carefully, I dropped my keys on the table, where _someone_ always seemed to grab them before we left. I headed into the bedroom and booted up my computer, the noisy fans causing me to jump. Then I laughed. _I spent so long getting used to those damn things, and now they make me jump again._ Rolling my eyes, I sat down.

"Everything okay in here."

I glanced over at Sideswipe and nodded with a smile. "Yeah." I waved him into the room, and watched as he wandered over, plopping down on my bed, about two feet to my left. Then I turned to the screen. "Just trying to remember that homey feeling this place used to have." I typed in my password and logged onto the internet, before opening a web page. "And trying to figure out how Optimus thinks _this_ trip might give him any new information." I signed into my hotmail. I checked my updates, and raised an eyebrow, frowning. "Okay, maybe he was right." I opened the email from a fellow Trans-fan friend of mine, and it had a link to a new update. My heart pounded as I clicked on the link.

"Your respiratory rate has greatly increased. What's wrong?"

I looked at Sideswipe. "Just worried. I have no idea what this link is going to tell me." I turned back as the page came up, and began reading through it, out loud. For the most part, it was all rumors and vague hints, or things we already knew. Glancing at Sideswipe multiple times, I raised an eyebrow at his thoughtful look. "What?"

"Just thinking." He shook his head a little. "It's nice to hear we have more allies coming; I just wish we knew with more certainty who they were."

"Silverbolt is a sure thing." I nodded, thinking. "One bot was called the 'Einstein bot', and I've heard people suggest it's going to be Wheeljack. Considering the bot, I'd agree with them. The red Ferrari is rumored to be HotRod." I winced then, feeling an instant dislike of him.

"You don't like him?" Sides raised an eyebrow.

I grimaced. "It's not that. He's a good bot. Loyal and dedicated. It's just..." I hesitated.

He frowned. "It's just...?"

"Well, in the cartoons, he replaced Optimus as Prime. Prime died, I forget how or why, and the bots kept trying to figure out how to activate the Matrix. At least, I think. I don't really remember. All I know is HotRod picked up the Matrix and it activated, and turned him into Rodimus Prime."

Sideswipe had a deep frown on his face. "If he activated the Matrix, the Primes chose him. If they chose him, I'd trust him." Then he shook his head, looking a little lost. "But _HotRod?_ A _Prime?_ That's just..." He shook his head again.

"Don't pull a Prowler." I rolled my eyes.

"But you don't like him as a Prime?"

"I...was so used to Prime as, well, Prime. Optimus made the best Prime ever, in my opinion. I just don't like the idea of him being replaced, no matter the reason. That's the only reason I don't really care for HotRod." I shrugged, helplessly.

"HotRod. Prime." Sideswipe looked ready to glitch, and his eyes were distant. "Sunny doesn't believe it either. We knew him back on Cybertron. He's a fun bot. A troublemaker, like us."

"Wonderful. A pranking Prime." I sighed again, shaking my head as Sideswipe laughed. "Oh yeah, ha-ha-ha. So funny." I flipped him off, before turning back to the computer.

"Any idea who else is coming?"

"Rumored at least one more, but no one knows. There was something about a custom made red Jeep named Rollbar." A look at the red twin yielded only a confused look. "Never heard of him?"

"Nope. Then again, there are many bots I don't know. He could be out there."

"Well, it's a rumor. Some people think that was just a custom Jeep a fan owned." I looked over the article, and the pictures with it. There were encircled images of the autobot insignia with a line through it, and the words 'Autobots Go Home' written all over. There were also pictures of the different car models, including one of the newer bots. I frowned at the silver Corvette and slanted a dark look at Sideswipe. "If you ever go topless, I'll scrap you!" I warned.

He blinked, and smirked. Then he raised his arms, and as quick as I could blink, pulled his shirt off. It disappeared as he dropped it, but my eyes were fastened to his toned chest. He had the full six pack abs, a smooth, hairless and flawless chest, and my eyes trailed over it an embarrassingly long moment.

And when I began to mentally drool over his chest, my eyes slowly roamed up to his face. I could still see the hint of scarring around the side of his face, permanent damage from what the 'Cons had done to him, but he was still remarkably attractive.

"I thought you were going to scrap me."

His laugh had my eyes shooting to his, and they narrowed. "I meant your real body." I pointed to the image, almost disappointed as he reformed his shirt and leaned forward to see. "And _pick_ a mode, already!" I slapped his arm with a glare. "Your shifting between Ferrari and Corvette is getting annoying!"

"Hey, I can't help it! They're both kickaft forms! They both look so good on me!"

It was my tun to laugh. That was Sideswipe's cockier side peeking through, and it was just like him. "Well, _pick_ one, before I have Ratchet rewire you into the permanent form of a Volkswagon Beetle." His optics went distant, before widening in horror and he groaned in disgust. I laughed again, turning back to the computer screen. Rolling down over the movie summary and rumors, I caught sight of something that knocked the laughter out of me.

I froze, staring at the screen, and feeling cold.

"Bella?"

My eyes read over the single quote over and over again. The Actor name pretty much guaranteed to me that it would happen, and I felt my heart drop.

"Bella?"

The hand on my shoulder knocked my mind off the screen, and I took a deep breath. "There's a quote here about the movie. Shia Laboef, the actor that plays Samuel Witwicky, was giving a statement to help fans of the show get a better idea of what's coming." I shot Sides a look. "It's not good. He says... He says 'This time they're targeting the humans'."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_'Targeting the humans'._

_The words played around in my head again and again. Shockwave, the new big baddy, was out there somewhere. No one knew how he got to Earth, when, or even why. We didn't know when he was coming, where he would land, or even what form he'd take. All we knew was the warning._

_'It'll be a killer ending to the trilogy!'._

_That one was Michael Bay himself. Worrying wording? Maybe not to most, but me? My heart was doing flip flops. Sure, it could have been misinformation to confuse the fans, but...something in me didn't think so. Sideswipe held me close, insisting everything would be okay, but I couldn't find it in me to believe him. They would be targeting the humans. We'd done almost everything we could to stop the second movie from happening. Hell, one of they key bots even switched sides! _

_The third movie, however... We didn't know enough. We just didn't know enough to stop it from happening._

_I had so much to talk to Optimus about. First and foremost, making sure the second movie _never_ came to pass, once and for all. By the time we were done, the Egyptians would hate us. Optimus might not even agree, but he just _had_ to see the point. We had to do it, whether we liked or not._

_We _had_ to get rid of the Sun Harvester!_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Note** : Um, just an FYI but at this point in the story, I had _no_ idea where I was going with it, so don't think you know which direction it's going, just yet. Hell, _I_ didn't even know which direction it was going at this point. So some of the quotes might or might not mean anything... I'll let you think on that a little. ;)

**Written** : Nov 11, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	68. Destructive Plans

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I am NOT a scientist, or a hacker. I barely made it out of highschool alive. So if this chapter confuses you, I'm sorry. -.-' I tried to be as...scientific as I could, and I know I failed miserably. -_-'

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_The downside was, convincing Optimus blowing up a pyramid in Egypt was for everyone's good, was not going to be easy. I knew he'd have arguments, and they'd all be valid, but in the end, the destruction of a small piece of history, and a great deal of damage to foreign relations was much preferable to countless lives lost when the Decepticons went after it._

_And trust me, the moment they found out about it, they'd go after it. _

_And they'd get it, considering it was in _human_ care. Just like the shard, in the movie, that they managed to get. Sure, Ravage and Soundwave were on our side, but what would stop Starscream and his trine from just flying down and claiming the pyramid, blowing up anyone in their way?_

_The upside, I had friends in NEST to help me research what it was I wanted to blow up. I'd research first, so I could present my own argument to Prime. By no means was I an Ambassador, or Public Relations Officer or anything, and thank God for that, but if he understood the importance, the fact it _should_ more or less end any chance of the second movie coming to pass, it was worth it._

_Not to mention, if we could stop the second movie, we'd put a big ol' monkey wrench in the plotline for the third._

_...Right?_

_-Bella_

* * *

"Okay, so what are we looking for?" Maggie chewed on her pencil, as she sat at the computer.

Simmons growled a little as he slouched in his own chair, at his own post. "Yeah, what was it you called us here for, little girl?"

"I'm over a million times bigger than you, heavier than you, and stronger than you." I gave him a dark look. "And I have no hesitancy towards dribbling you across the planet like the world's ugliest basketball. Watch who you're calling names, _little_ boy."

Sunstreaker hummed in approval behind me.

"That's our mate." Sideswipe murmured quietly, though I had no doubt they both knew I could hear them plain as day.

"I know. Impressive, isn't she? Hard to believe she used to be organic."

I turned my dark look on them, crouching over Maggie's chair as I glared. "Are you insulting me? Because I can and will _happily_ take Sunfire and spend the next week in Maggie's quarters."

They exchanged looks and quickly shook their heads, falling silent, and I turned back to said Australian girl. "How about that? Men that _don't_ get off on the though of girl on girl." Not that I'd hinted at it, but most men hearing what I'd said would have had their minds take fantastic nose dives into the gutter.

Maggie snickered a little, before opening a browser. "Can we focus, here? You said it was important." Her blue eyes glittered with silent laughter, even as Simmons huffed at me.

I hadn't seen the man since he was brought back to the base, and I was perfectly fine with that. Fact was, I didn't like him. He had redeemable qualities, but they paled in comparison to the image of Bumblebee writhing in agony, because of the douche's original job. I had no idea what he thought of the Autobots, and quite frankly, he could shove his opinion.

The only reason I called him here today, was because I needed the two best hackers to help me out. I wanted to research the pyramids of Egypt, without the Autobots knowing about it, if it was possible. The last thing I needed was someone asking a million questions _before_ I was ready to answer them.

Not to mention, there _might_ be some complex hacking into foreign databanks involved... Which of course the Government would have an issue with, which would mean Optimus would have an issue with it. And even if the others didn't, if Prime said 'Don't do it', I couldn't do it.

So we were kind of working off the radar at the moment.

"We need to...well, _I_ need some information on the pyramids of Egypt."

Simmons scoffed and leaned back in his chair. "What for? School assignment. I'm here as a soldier, not a personal tutor."

"If I wanted a personal tutor, I wouldn't have chosen the man with a closeup thong shot in the second movie. I swear, just about everyone lost their lunches at that. You'd never _heard_ so many people groan in horror at the same time." I shot, causing him to shoot me a look caught between mortification and insult. "I need to hack into their most secure systems for the information I'm after."

"And you people blame the government for conspiracy theories?" He shot, adjusting his neck tie almost self-consciously.

Ignoring him, I leaned on Maggie's chair. Well, not really. If I'd _leaned_ on it, she wouldn't have a chair to sit on. I more or less gently laid a finger on the back of it. "Well, we know that one of the pyramids isn't _actually_ a pyramid, but the've probably tried to get into it already. Since there isn't a bunch of talk of an alien structure in Egypt, I'm guessing they're either keeping it quiet, or they haven't actually gotten in yet."

For once, Simmons didn't seem to have a comeback for that. Instead, he sighed, muttering 'kids' under his breath, before leaning forward and typing. "Just so you know, I'm not taking the heat when you start a war."

"Of course you are. You threatened me with exposure and I had no choice." I spoke mock sweetly, rolling my eyes. "I intend to talk to Optimus, I just need to get some information first."

They were both silent as they worked, and I backed off Maggie after a moment. I watched, silently, as they typed quickly, their eyes fastened to the streams of data that flowed over the screen. Maggie was the first to enter a site full of foreign symbols I recognized vaguely as Egyptian, and began working her way around password encrypted files.

It wasn't long before I heard the twins behind me, muttering to themselves about random topics. It seemed that breaking the law couldn't keep their interest. They spoke about movies, and to my horror, pornography. When I heard they'd been researching human mating habits, I shot them a horrified look, and they paused.

"What?" Sunstreaker raised an optic ridge.

"Humans are modest." I hissed under my breath.

"Could've fooled me." Sideswipe was smirking. "They have some rather bold images and videos out there, for human 'modesty'."

"Why do you think _I_ had that channel blocked?" I kept my voice low, not wanting to disturb the hackers at work. Well, partly because I didn't want to disturb them. Partly also because I didn't want them to know about _that_. "Besides, now _so_ isn't the time for sex talk and pornography discussion!"

They seemed to regard me a long moment, and I just _knew_ this talk wasn't over. Not by a long shot. As disgusted as they were by a lot about human society, it seemed mating was one thing they wanted to 'research'. With me to help them.

I had a feeling the fascination wouldn't last long, though. Not when they realized just how much work, sweat and...um...bodily fluids were involved.

My cooling fans switched on and I blushed, causing Sunstreaker to smirk. However it was Sideswipe who spoke up then, raising his voice to a more normal level.

"Can you answer something?"

"As long as it's not relating to mating in _any_ way..." I hissed, keeping my voice low.

"No, I was wondering about human currency. Why is it, people say money doesn't grow on trees, yet banks have branches?"

I was so caught off guard by the unusual question, that Maggie's startled laughter caused me to jump. I watched her shake her head, actually bringing a hand to her forehead as she snickered, and even Simmons couldn't resist a smirk and small chuckle at the question. Then I turned back to the twins.

"Seriously? I don't know if that's a bad joke, or what." I blinked, seeing his innocent expression, and sighed. "Not those kind of branches, Sides." I did a double take as Sunstreaker vented and brought a hand to his own face, shaking his head just as Maggie had done.

"Alright, I'm in." Simmons spoke up, and I glanced over to see him on a different page from Maggie's. "I've hacked into their confidential files relating to national history. I don't see a whole lot interesting except this." He pointed to a portion of the file that spoke about how many pyramids had been found in Egypt.

It included which ones had been excavated already, which ones had been scouted successfully with plans for excavation, and one single pyramid, listed as 'Unable to Excavate'.

"Huh?" I blinked at it.

"I have more about it over here." Maggie pointed to her own page. "It looks like there's one pyramid, recently found, that the scientists are unable to enter to check it out. They said it has remarkably advanced security for something built hundreds, if not thousands of years ago."

There was a picture of pictograms and hieroglyphics. It was a typical locking mechanism, even a child would recognize that much. However, the moving blocks that had to be rearranged into an image were broken up. Instead of maybe eight blocks to move, there were well over twenty, and they were set up in just a way...

"But scientists should be able to figure that out." I frowned. I wasn't a scientist, and I was _so_ thankful they'd decided to dumb it all down for me. Scientists were supposed to be more or less giant, floating brains. Why couldn't they figure even _that_ out?

"They probably would have, except someone got the wrong answer, and some sort of paralytic spray shot out of an opening in the entrance. The sun shines in that doorway after noon, and they were unable to move. If they'd been alone, they could have died of heat stroke easily." Maggie informed me, scrolling down to an image of a tiny hole in the wall. "And that's not the only security measure, apparently.

"Okay, so basically, that's one tough rock house to break into." I frowned. "But is it _our_ pyramid? The one with the machine in it?"

"It seems so. No one was able to identify the compound used to paralyze the scientist. Also, these were apparently heavily present around the entrance of the structure." She clicked on a link, and it opened up a gallery file.

I felt my eyes widen.

"Hey, those are Cybertronian!"

I glanced over at the twins. "Can you read them?" I had an odd feeling of deja vu with Sam and the Chevy twins, when he asked _them_ the very same question, but shook it off.

They shook their heads. "No, that's the language of the old Primes, I think." Sideswipe volunteered.

With a nod, I turned to Maggie. "Can you save a copy of that file to a datapad for Optimus?" She nodded, and clicked on something. "Okay, so there's no ancient Egyptian treasure buried under that pyramid." I sighed in relief. That was one small worry out of the way. At least the only thing the Egyptians had to be pissed about, would be a pyramid vanishing from the skyline.

"Doesn't mean they're gonna like the fact we've hacked into their system. I've already got two tracking bots on my tail." Simmons was typing furiously. "I've lost one already, and dead ended the other." I cringed at Dead End's name, even if that's not how he meant it. "If there's anything else, I suggest we move fast, or we're gonna raise flags on their system and really _will_ start a war."

"Can we get a better feed on it's exact location? I mean, are there any cities nearby, or civilization? Research camps? Anything? How about unusual activity? Unexplained phenomena?"

"No, not that it appears."

I nodded again. I wasn't sure if that was all I wanted, but I didn't have much of a choice. "Okay, that's it then."

They quickly shut things down, and Maggie handed me a small datapad. "Thanks." I sighed and straightened. "Thanks for your help, guys. I'm hoping my plan will stop the second movie from coming to play, and possibly the third as well."

"What's so bad about these movies? I keep hearing bits and pieces." Simmons was frowning, all arrogant pretenses gone. He was gazing at me with honest confusion now, though his expression was still hard.

"The second movie has a second war, that takes the lives of a lot of good people and bots." I told him vaguely. "And destroys a large portion of the area around that pyramid, as well as reveals the Autobots' presence on Earth to every human out there."

He blinked, before frowning. "Well geez! I've been trying to do that for ages now, and no one will listen to me!"

"Because it's not a good thing!" I growled. "There's an 'Autobots go home' theme to the third movie! People want them gone, and now that the Decepticons have nothing to lose in showing themselves, they start targeting the humans more! It's rumored they're going to go after the humans more than anything, especially the human allies!" Key word 'rumored', but I knew that with the Decepticons, it was a very real possibility.

"What? What the hell am I doing here then?" Simmons was on his feet, but when I glared at him, he sighed and shook his head. "Aww, who am I kidding? I woulda jumped at the chance to be here, first chance I got! Just keep my ma out of this!" He almost snarled, before slinking back into his chair.

"I'm here either way." Maggie nodded with determination. "I can help and actually make a difference. Like hell I'm gonna miss that!"

I smiled at her, relieved by her determination. "I'm hoping that by blowing up the weapon, we can stop all that from happening."

Her eyes widened then. "You wanna blow up a pyramid of Egypt? Forget the Cybertronian war, that'll start World War III for the humans!"

"Not if the government can work things out. Look, the other governments have to already know about the bots. I mean, how else are they explaining mass destruction on a scale the size of a nuclear bomb, minus the bomb? Or all the meteors landing, and disappearing? Or our government repeatedly invading their lands with armed forces? They have to have _some_ idea. If we can assure them it'll stop a LOT of bad, they have to go with it, for the sake of their own peoples' safety."

"You hope."

I looked at Simmons and shrugged. "Yeah, more or less. It's the only idea I've got. I have no idea where the Fallen is, or how to get to him. Starscream's still out there, and Shockwave, the big baddie from the third movie, is probably already on his way to Earth. If we can destroy the Sun Harvester, we _might_ stand a chance of at least doing some major damage to the Decepticon morale."

"They outnumber us." Maggie recalled.

"Yeah, but if they have nothing to fight for, they might not fight with as much determination. They won't run. They're not smart enough for that." I grimaced. "And they're being led by a raving lunatic, which doesn't help anyone."

"You're hoping to deal them a blow and stop the movies." Simmons nodded. "Well, good luck with that." There was a surprising lack of hostility in his voice when he stood. "I need to get back to work on the sensor net, so we can get ourselves more advanced eyes and ears in the skies."

I nodded, and stepped back. "And I have one _hell_ of a mission ahead of me, convincing Optimus to okay this." I sighed and shook my head. "I am _so_ damn glad I'm not an advisor, or an ambassador or anything. I don't think I'd be able to handle that job. I'd be grey before I was forty, and in my grave by fifty. Thanks again, guys." Turning my head, I all but stalked out of the room, heading towards Optimus' office with two warily curious bots following me the entire way.

Funny, I entered that room, steeling my resolve to deal with Simmons, and I left it loathing him...maybe just a _little_ bit less.

* * *

**(Optimus' Quarters)**

"I do not think this is a wise decision." Optimus frowned as he read the report. "Regardless of your valid argument. Destroying a piece of your history-"

"But it's not a piece of our history. It's a stone structure the Primes used to cover the Harvester." I pointed out, still in my bipedal form. "It's just a cover. There's no actual history of _ours_ there." Except the fact that pyramid was a landmark for lord only knew how long.

He paused, optics zoomed in on the datapad he was connected to. "I sincerely doubt Secretary Keller would even allow this." Then, as if reminded of something, he stiffened. "Ah, yes, that reminds me. Secretary Keller contacted me earlier today, mentioning having heard of a 'Norman Galloway' requesting information about our base."

I growled a little. "If it's Galloway, he wasn't _requesting._ He was demanding."

"Hmm, yes, however the Secretary of Defence was able to..._persuade_ him not to get involved in our case."

Aka, he probably threatened the guy, or threw his power around. Either way, I was glad I fore-warned them all ahead of time, and was able to stall Galloway's progress before he could even get started. "The President agreed with him, thanks to your revelations, so Mr. Galloway has been refused access to any and all NEST files, or any interaction with any of the Autobots."

I was a bit surprised by his answer. In the movie, hadn't the President been on Galloway's side? Then again, the Autobots had been more clueless and caused more destruction. Not to mention, again, no one had any warning about the irreparable damage he'd do, accidentally, just be _being_ here, or being privy to classified information. All things considered, I could only smile, relieved, and nod. "Good. Now..about the pyramid..."

Venting deeply, Optimus hung his head and shook it, and I sighed a little, realizing I'd won. There was no guarantee they'd blow it up, but I knew he'd bring it up as a very serious threat to the humans, and self-preservation would take over then, on the side of the humans.

Knowing the danger, I was convinced Keller would do everything in his power to convince the President this was important, and if said President _really_ cared about the people, he'd also want to help. However, Prime's face? That was an expression of defeat, and I felt like a thousand pounds had been lifted off my shoulders. I had _his_ help.

Once that machine was gone, we could work towards taking out the Decepticons once and for all.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_The relief that came with knowing we were going to either blow up or disassemble the Sun Harvester, and stop at least a portion of the second movie from coming true, didn't last long. Even as Optimus cleared it surprisingly easily with Keller, a new dread settled down over me._

_Even with the Harvester gone, Starscream would still be about. Would he keep looking for a way to bring the sparklings to life? Did he even _care_ about them, or was that something the movie got wrong? And what about Shockwave? I'd be lying if I said I wasn't worried about _his_ arrival. _

_I had no idea anything about his arrival, but his rumored powers were terrifying. If there was one bot other than Soundwave, who could hack into an Autobot's processor and probably take it over, it was Shockwave. What if, even with Soundwave on our side, Shockwave learned the base secrets? What if _he_ found Megatron's body and the shard and revived him?_

_I had a new issue to discuss with Optimus, and you better believe I hurried my ass to his quarters to discuss it. He was less reluctant to have Megatron's body removed from the ocean and taken apart by Ratchet himself, to make sure the Decepticon leader would _never_ be activated again. Not blasted, like I wanted with the Sun Harvester, but just dismantled for everyone's safety._

_Brother or not, Optimus knew what was at risk, leaving deactivated Decepticons lie. Besides, two big baddies were bad enough. Even if the Fallen never came to Earth, though I'm pretty sure one day he will, Starscream and Shockwave would be difficult enough to deal with on their own right._

_The last thing we needed was even the slightest risk of Megatron coming back to join them._

_Prime was _not_ going to die! Not if I had anything to say about it!_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Note** : Yeah this chapter feels awkward at best, reading over it. I'm not that pleased with it, other than Bella's 'world's ugliest basketball' comment to Simmons, which still makes me snicker with amusement. XD

**Written** : Nov 13, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	69. Shanghai, Part 1

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Hey guys! Sorry about the _really_ long wait! I got home about a week ago, but wasn't feeling well. Add to that jet lag and no food in the house (I was gone for a little over two weeks, so I emptied my fridge), I stayed at the farm for a bit. Now I'm still adjusting to being back, so for my BETAs who may or may not read this, I will get to your stories soon, I promise. I had tons of fun at FanExpo, and even had a random little boy ask to take my picture!

Cool! Though...somehow I doubt a 6 year old kid would know who Kahlan Amnell is, LOL, but still cool! I had a ball, walked so much I had blisters on my blisters (not a typo, lmao), and got addicted to bubble tea!

YAY!

And now I'm home.

...

Anywho, on to the next chapter! And then off to work on my Wolf's Rain fanfics. XD Ah yes, did I forget to mention my cousin got me into 3 new animes? Mythical Detective Loki: Ragnarok, Ouran High Host Club, and Wolf's Rain. I love Kiba, and he's voiced by Johnny Yong Bosche, whom I also love! :D

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Our forces were spread thinner than ever. Ratchet and Jolt were immediately set on the task of disassembling Megatron's body, once it was retrieved. The Arcee triplets were sent to Egypt to keep an eye on the pyramid from a distance as the bots gathered more information before preparing to disassemble the machine._

_Apparently, blowing up the Harvester was just out of the question, but hey! At least it would be gone, soon!_

_And Optimus got a call about a Decepticon sighting in Shanghai._

_My heart started pounding at the news, and has yet to calm down. This was one of the battles from the movie, I just knew it._

_So what did I do? Even as Sideswipe and the Chevy twins were chosen, Sunstreaker was a given. Anyone whose anyone knows where one twin goes, the other follows. I knew not to expect much from this battle, in the way of similarities to the one in the movie. The Arcee triplets wouldn't be there, for one. And Sunstreaker would, for the other._

_But me? _

_I was given the chance to stay home and do nothing. I could stay at the base and chill._

_...Yeah right! And Starscream would start prancing through flower fields, preaching peace and love!_

_I was going, too! I don't give two frags what anyone else said! I'd been training, and I was sure as hell going to put it to use! _

_-Bella_

* * *

**(A Few Days Later)**

There was a low growl from the yellow Ferrari, and I rolled my eyes in annoyance. Ever since finding out about my insistence to come with them, Sunny and Sides had been less than happy about it. Even Rika threw a fit, but at least she'd been understanding.

Speaking of Rika, I'd have to make a point of spending quality time with her later. With everything going on lately, I'd barely even seen or heard from her, and it was beginning to make me feel guilty. I was spending even less with Wheelie, which made me feel even worse, but he'd integrated himself so smoothly in with the bots and humans, he always had company. So that helped.

"You're not a warrior."

I snorted at his words, and pointedly ignored him.

"Every time we've faced Decepticons, you've been hurt and captured."

"Well, that's because A) The first time we ran into them, we had no Autobot assistance, and I was a moron. Besides, I came back with allies. B) They caught us off guard, and I didn't know how to protect myself."

"You still don't."

Narrowing my eyes at him, I kicked at the gas pedals. Couldn't he, for once, just shut up? I knew asking for encouragement was too much from _Sunstreaker,_ but did he have to fill my mind with doubts? "I've been training with Ironhide. If that hasn't taught me anything, what good am I? I'm an Autobot now. I need to learn to fight in actual battles, protect myself, and be helpful."

It was admittedly not a fun idea, but I had to do what needed to be done. I had to fight, to help protect innocent lives, and the people I cared about.

The Ferrari shook angrily, and the red Corvette next to it shifted, clearly uncomfortably. It seemed Sideswipe had finally chosen his form, the Stingray Corvette, in a deep cherry red, with silver trim. It was different, but suited him. Though, that wasn't really the top of my mind right now. "So you chose a dangerous mission to start?"

"Well, I figured the next time we see the Decepticons, they'll stand still and let me kill them with ease." I rolled my eyes again. "I mean, it's not like _all_ encounters with them will be dangerous now, will it?" I shot back sarcastically. "Stop being an over protective mother hen!"

"Would you have me sit back and be _happy_ my mate is going into battle?" He barked back, snarling. The fact that he called me his mate didn't phase me in the least, considering the topic at hand. "My mate, who has a sparkling to take care of, and isn't even fully trained?"

"What Sunny means is, we're worried." Sideswipe's voice came through the radio, before a blast of static sounded. "And don't you start with me, Sunshine. We all know it."

"Doesn't mean I have to be _happy_!" He hissed.

I could have made a comment about him _ever_ being happy, but it honestly never crossed my mind. "Good ol' Sunny." I grumbled, eyeing the Corvette with more and more interest. If I could sit in Sideswipe, at least _he_ wouldn't be bitching and moaning about it. But I scrapped that idea as soon as it hit. As if Sunstreaker would let me out of him, if he knew what I wanted, and he wouldn't let me out without me _telling_ him what I wanted. I knew that much.

Still, that didn't mean I couldn't make my case. "Listen...we're already in Shanghai, heading to the designated post. If you're gonna bitch the entire time, I'll ride with Sides. He might not like it, but at least he won't make me feel like a useless pile of scrap metal."

The engine of the car revved angrily. "Can you _blame_ me?" He growled shrilly, apparently struggling to keep his voice down, even as a pretended to drive him through the streets. "You're going to be in _danger_, Bella!"

"I know!" I finally snapped. "Don't you think I'm the least bit aware? My heart hasn't stopped fragging pounding since I got in you!"

"That's what he said." Sides piped in.

I was so startled by his input, I nearly slammed my head into the steering wheel, before busting up laughing. I think even Sunny was startled, because the angry gunning of his engine died down to normal revving, and the yellow twin didn't seem to have a reply for that.

"Look..." Once I calmed down, I breathed deeply. "I'm scared, okay? I'm fragging _terrified_! But...I have to do this. I have to prove to myself I _can_ do this. I need to know I can protect myself. Besides, I know roughly what to expect." Not the details, however. I knew the main strike force would be hitting the contruction Decepticon. The big guy that made Optimus look like an ant. It was up to us to take out Sideways, who would be hiding.

We just had to wait for our cue.

And yeah, I was second guessing my decision. I knew some fancy tricks thanks to the twins and Ironhide, but against a seasoned Decepticon fighter? My only comfort would be that I wasn't alone. I kept praying that, at the worst, I'd at least distract him.

Not that they needed my help, and I knew it.

At least, on the upside, I'd been able to warn the bots ahead of time to clear out the area. Even the buildings. I didn't know which one in particular Sideways rammed through, in the movie, so I begged them to evacuate them all, as well as blockading the highways to keep people off them, as well.

"You're already here." Sunstreaker growled, clearly not liking it. "It's not like my bitching will make you magically teleport home."

Shaking my head, I sighed. "I'm part of a war, Sunstreaker. There may not be an end in sight; we don't know. Isn't it better I get battlefield experience and know how to watch over myself? Or would you rather I remain unexperienced, and not ready for the next attack I'm drawn into, whether I like it or not?"

"I get the point, femme! You don't need to rub it in."

Leaning forward, I planted a kiss on the steering wheel. "You know, you guys keep saying it to me...and this may not be the best time, but... I love you." The words felt awkward but right at the same time.

The Ferrari swerved a little, and I listened to Sunny hiss. I felt hurt, but he grumbled at me, and explained why. "Don't do that. You're making it worse. Keep that up, and frag the battle! I'll take you home myself, if I have to swim across the ocean to do it."

I was suddenly absconded with an image of Sunstreaker doing the backstroke, spitting water over his head as he casually swam across the ocean, and once again that steering wheel looked too tempting. Shaking my head to clear the thought from my mind, I raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell you I love you?" I was teasing at this point, but there was no need for _him_ to know that.

"Don't do _that_ either."

Although apparently he did, already.

"You know we love you, too." Sideswipe once again piped in, his tone decidedly warmer. "And we look forward to the day we can finally be true sparkmates."

_Oh, now that's not fair._ I glanced out the window, as we slowed and pulled into an alley. I felt bad immediatly, knowing the only reason they hadn't pushed me was because of what Starscream had done. I'd let him get to me, and now we were all suffering for it.

My eyes burned. "I'm sorry." I whispered, lowering my head. "I've been such an idiot. I let Starscream get to me, and he hardly did more than dent my chest plates and fill me head with... Well, he filled my head with the uncertainties I didn't even realize were there. I let him hurt me with _words_." Sniffling a little, I wiped at my eyes. "Wow, I feel pathetic."

"Great, Sides. You made her cry." Sunstreaker drolled in annoyance.

"Hey, I didn't mean it!"

With a shaky laugh, I shook my head. "It's my own fault. I just feel stupid for how I've been acting. I know you'd never hurt me."

"Damn right we wouldn't. We can be cruel, but we're not Decepticons."

I raised an eyebrow, not sure exactly how to take that. Sunny sure had a way with words, didn't he? "So, what now?" I cleared my throat and buried my tears, wiping my face. "I guess I should get out and transform. In the movie, the Arcee triplets chased after Sideways, but it was Sides who took him down." I grinned then, cheering considerably as I remembered that scene. "He gracefully leapt into the air and flipped over the 'Con, throwing a blade and sticking it to Sideways. Literally. Then he landed, and spun, and grabbed his sword as Sideways kept driving, splitting him in half."

"Damn! That sounds like a cool move!" Sides cheered. "Sounds just like me!"

"Yep. You even ended it with the 'Damn, I'm good!' line." I giggled then.

"That's where you got that from?" It took me a moment to recall I'd quoted Sides, the first time I climbed into Sunny. The yellow Ferrari snorted. "I could've done better."

"As if!" Sides laughed over the speakers.

"Wanna bet?"

"Now, now, boys. This isn't the time." I rolled my eyes and sighed. Tugging at the door handle, I raised an eyebrow at Sunny. "Wanna let me out so I can transform? Or were you planning on fighting with me inside you? 'Cause I gotta say, if you need to transform, Cybertronian or not, I'm gonna make a rather squishy mess inside you."

That got a rather violent shudder, before the door nearly popped open, with enough force to nearly remove me from the seat, if not for the seatbelt. "Gee, I feel loved."

"Oh, I love you. I might even forgive you for making a mess in me, _if_ you volunteer to clean it up." He snarked, unhooking the seatbelt. "But we do have a mission, and I'd rather not have bitched this entire way, only to end up transforming in the heat of battle and offlining you in the process. Now, out, femme, and transform."

"Yes, mother." I smirked as I climbed out of the car. Then, as a second thought, I turned and leaned in the door. "Oh, do a good job in this battle, and I'll give you a warm bath afterwards. A more thorough one." I winked, feeling the car tremble and the hydraulics hissing a little as he settled lower on his axels.

"Not the time or place, Bella." He groaned.

Sideswipe huffed loudly behind us, and I leaned back out to look at him. "Something to say, princess?"

There was a moment of silence. "What about me?" The whine had me giggling as I patted Sunstreaker's hood. "Same goes for you, Sides." I promised, before walking around the car. I moved a safe distance ahead, glancing around warily, before transforming.

Then, we sat and waited.

* * *

**(A Few Hours Later)**

It felt like forever, before I heard the explosions. I only had my internals rewired to hear the conversation between the others, as Will shouted orders, and the bots responded in kind. I still didn't know how to answer them, so I didn't bother, but when he mentioned bringing in the big bot, I couldn't help but glance up.

An odd thing to do in car mode, but apparently it was possible.

The night sky was dark. The city lights of Shanghai drowned out the stars, but with my enhanced sight, I watched the C-17 as it flew overhead. It was too far for me to make out details, but I didn't miss it when the door opened, and a large semi rolled out.

I'd thought it was an amazing scene in the movie. I mean, how did Optimus make his actions as a freakin free falling _semi_ seem so graceful? Seeing it in person, however, I was more scared than awed. What if something went wrong? All it took was for the parachutes to fail, and he'd land wrong, possibly causing severe injury. If he landed badly enough, he'd offline, saving Megatron the work.

_He did this in the movie._ My heart -_spark_. I'd never get used to that term- pounded so angrily, it drowned out the gunning of the twins' engines behind me. _He did it then. He'll do it now._ I trusted him, even if I worried. I watched as he transformed in the air, looking for all the world like the semi had exploded, and then imploded into a giant robot.

He soon disappeared out of sight, behind distant buildings, but my form shook from the shockwave of his landing. _Let him be okay. Let him be okay._

_**"Optimus Prime, en route!"**_

I sagged a little in relief, before feeling the gentlest of nudges against my back bumper. "Hey! Watch where you're nudging!" I yelped, my cooling fans switching on.

That got me an amused snort. "We need to move. This location isn't near enough to the battle."

Was this a part of the battle in the movie? Had Sideswipe needed to move? "Um, okay?"

"Something wrong?"

I felt nervous, all of a sudden. There was just so much I didn't know, as far as the details went. What if Sideswipe _didn't_ move in the movie? What if, by moving, we put ourselves in more danger?

"Bella, we need to move!"

Taking a deep breath, I figuratively nodded to myself, before rolling forward. "Which way?" My voice shook embarrassingly, and I mentally cursed myself for it.

"You can stay here, if you've changed your mind."

There was a smugness about Sunstreaker's voice that annoyed me, and any indecision I had faded. "I asked a question." I growled, my engine revving. "Which. Way?"

There was a sigh. "Backwards and follow us."

I moved obediently, backing onto the street. I'd gotten better at driving, though I had yet to learn how to form a holographic form separate of my own body. Luckily my windows were tinted, so that if any stray humans remained in the area, they wouldn't see the Porsche driving itself. I followed Sideswipe, Sunstreaker breaking off to come in behind me.

We drove down a few streets, until the ground rocked with an explosion. As if by some unspoken word, Sideswipe darted into an alleyway.

"Scatter!" He called, hurriedly.

My spark jumped in my throat, and I quickly sped a little further down the road, despite Sunstreaker's hisses, dashing into another alley. He didn't follow me, and I didn't know if that was good or bad. _Scatter? Why scatter?_ I heaved on my axels, breathing deeply, when another booming explosion caused my breath to catch.

_**"Get him some cover! Team six, watch your backs!"**_ Wills' voice crackled over the internals, the pitch high enough to instantly give me a headache.

_How do they deal with this?_

_**"Optimus is on his tail! Ironhide, get his six! Get his six!"**_

_**"On my way!"**_

_**"There's another one! There! The Audi!"**_

_Sideways..._ A map flashed in my mind, with blue dots, red dots, and white dots. I remembered the earlier debriefing. Red were Decepticons, blue were Autobots and white were humans. I recognized my own position, and I reocognized as a red Decepticon signal flashed and disappeared, leaving one left.

I didn't give it much thought, as I squealed back out of the alley. All I could think was... That bot was responsible for causing _so_ much pain! Then there were thoughts of worry, realizing his position wasn't fixed. He was moving, and sneaking up on an immobile Autobot signal near me.

Of course, I knew the twins would see the map. They'd see it, and know what it meant, but that didn't cross my mind as I acted.

Slamming on my breaks, I turned sharply, my wheels burning painfully at the tight, sharp turn I took. I spun towards the moving dot, and hit the gas, rushing forth.

_**"Bella, stop!"**_ Sideswipe's voice called.

Sunstreaker snarled, and I barely had time to once again slam on my breaks when the yellow Ferrari darted out of an alley before me, blocking the road and sitting there. _**"Scratch my paint, and mate or not, there will be hell to pay! Just what the slag did you think you were doing?"**_

"He's moving! He's heading right this way!"

"We noticed, damn it! Get back in your spot!"

"No!" I transformed quickly, followed by a very pissed off looking bot. "He's alone, I can take him out!" I grabbed one of my blades, a gift from the twins after progressing in armed combat apparently nicely. "Let me do this!"

Sunstreaker rumbled angrily.

_**"I don't know or particularly care what's going on over there, but we have a mission to complete, people!"**_ Will's voice barked over the internals. Whatever the bots had done to hack into the walkie talkie channel, or whatever, his voice boomed in my head, causing the instant headache to increase. _**"Sideways is getting away! Sunstreaker! Sideswipe! You need to catch him!"**_

I frowned, though it felt more like a pout. I had a mental whine of 'What about me?' prepared when Sunstreaker snarled. "Fine!" He hissed quietly. "He's yours, but mess up, and that's the last mission we take you out on!"

"Gee, that's encouraging. I feel so much better now. Thanks." I snapped angrily, glaring right back at him. "No, pressure, huh? If I fail at this, you're more or less telling me not to even bother trying again!"

_**"Enough, you two!"**_ Sideswipe had never sounded so annoyed. _**"Bella, we're trusting you to know what you're capable of. Sunstreaker, shut your trap for once, and get back into position!"**_

_**"Are you seriously okay with this?"**_

_**"The hell I am! I'm just not going to get into a fight with Bella and let Sideways sneak up on me, like the two of you are doing! Sunstreaker, if you keep yapping, you'll only screw up her own personal mission. So shut it and get hiding!"**_

_**"For the record, I don't like this." **_With a rumbling snarl, Sunstreaker transformed back into his alternate mode and slinked back into the alley. _**"We're here, if you need us."**_

Sighing a little, I crouched down and grabbed my other blade, readying for battle. "I got this."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I kept chanting 'I can do this', 'I can do this' over and over to myself, but it didn't escape my notice that it wasn't really helping. Just who was I trying to convince, anyways? Them? Or myself?_

_...Could I do this?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Nov 18, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	70. Shanghai, Part 2

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I can do this. I can do this. I can do this. _

_...I thought mantras like that were supposed to help make you feel more confident? So why was it then, it only made me feel less so? _

_As I picked up the powerful engine of a muscle car approaching, I couldn't help but wonder... Was my stance right? What if he was expecting me? What if I wasn't fast enough? Agile enough? Stealthy enough? Strong enough?_

_Then, as if to make everything worse, I could hear Sideswipe trying to encourage me, though his voice let on how worried he was. I could hear Sunstreaker explaining they were letting me have my chance at the bot, and Ironhide screaming at them how stupid it was. I could hear even Will asking them if they were sure letting me take him on was a good idea._

_Gee, I feel really encouraged. _

_Not._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(?, Normal POV)**

"Why have you called for me?"

"Why do you keep insisting on speaking in English?"

Optics narrowed. "Not every mission we'll get will be mindless blowing things up, you know. It would help if we knew the language so we didn't slip up. Organics don't speak Cybertronian."

"Whatever. I'd rather kill organics than speak to them. Look, the reason I called you here is this." A large computer screen sat in front of them. It looked more like a jumble of wires and cables, seeing as how the parts had all been stolen, but it served it's purpose. On the screen showed a single red Decepticon symbol, but it was a large one.

"What's it mean?"

"That the Autobots have decided to defect." Swinging an arm, Thundercracker nailed Skywarp upside the head. "Think, dumbaft! Screamer wanted us to piggy back a locator beacon onto the new Sensor Net the Autobots built."

"Someone's replying? Already?"

"And by the readings on the energy output, this is a strong someone. The signal looks familiar, too. I can't quite place it, though."

"Whatever. So we tell Screamer?"

"We tell him someone big's on the way. We won't be able to communicate via long distant communications for a week or so."

"'Via'?"

Optics rolled again. "Earth slang. Look it up, moron." With another clip to Skywarp's head, Thundercracker turned and left the room, heading for another one. _That signal looks so familiar. I have a feeling Starscream's _not_ going to like whoever it is._ Despite his feeling of dread, however, Thundercracker entered the makeshift throne room and bowed deeply, before approaching his trine mate and leader. _"Sir, we've got news."_

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

The sound of the engine drew closer, and I could hear tires squealing. I wondered if he knew we were here, was heading our way on purpose, and hunkered down even more so the buildings hid me better. As the lights first shone on me, I listened to the engines of the twins dying out, their own lights flipping off.

I felt, for a moment, abandoned, before my sense of reason caught up to me.

Even as the car skidded to a stop and transformed, I narrowed my eyes.

"Ahh, Isabella." He grinned at me, crimson optics flashing with undisguised malice. "I've been hoping to see you again."

"After what I told Barricade about you, I'm not surprised. I'd call you a James Bond wannabe, but you just plain suck camshaft, so..." Inside my head, Sunstreaker and Sideswipe spluttered in muffled amusement, and I rolled my eyes.

_**"Oh man, you gotta say that again!"**_

_**"How can one femme make 'camshaft' sound so-?"**_

I cleared my throat and straightened, purposely ignoring the twins, and brushing off the reference from the second movie. "I've been looking for you, as well." Not exactly a lie. "How was it, Optimus put it, at the end of the first movie? 'By the end of the day, one shall stand, and one shall fall'?" I hefted my blades and stood, ready.

"You plan to take _me_ on? _You_?" He snorted a little.

"I was doing damn fine against you on our first meeting, until Barricade stepped in the way." I reminded him with a viscious smile. "And I didn't even know how to fight then."

His smug look seemed to turn vaguely uncertain, before he turned smug again. "I've had millenia of fighting."

"Probably all cowardly moves and stabbing unexpected bots in the back, yes?"

He snarled lowly, optics flashing with barely concealed rage. "Watch yourself, femme."

"Or what? You'll run crying, all the way back to Unicron?" Have I ever mentioned how much I hate this bot?

_**"Unicron? That slagger works for a myth?"**_ Sideswipe's barely concealed amusement made me raise an eyebrow, even as Sunstreaker hissed at him.

_**"Forget Unicron! Forget the banter! Just take him out already! I'm rusting on my axels."**_

"There's medication for that, you know!" I hissed, before sighing and shaking my head as Sideways straightened, glancing around.

"Ahh, so that's where your bravado comes from. You're not alone. What, are your precious mechs here, too? I _thought_ I sensed traces of Autobot signatures."

"It doesn't matter." I lifted a blade and pointed it at Sideways. "They're not interfering. This is _my_ battle." With that being said, I rushed him. I swung my blade at him, back and forth, but he ducked and rolled. Spinning in place, I dodged to the side to avoid one of his own blades, countering with an upward sweep of my second blade, which cut into his arm.

He shouted in anger and pain, recoiling, and I allowed a tiny feeling of smugness to grow in my heart. "Didn't expect that, did you?" I almost hissed, feeling my anger growing towards him. Just that little simple drawing of energon filled me with a strange thirst to see more.

This creature was evil. He killed for the sheer pleasure of it, and hungered for power. I had the power to stop him. I could. I was allowed.

...Was this what bloodlust felt like?

He'd been the very reason Maggie and Mikeala almost froze, when hiding. He was the reason Rika _could_ have suffocated, or been crushed by a boulder. He was the reason I'd been captured at all, and Starscream started his obssession.

He was an enemy and a traitor to everyone who knew him.

And he was proud of it.

If this was bloodlust, I was more than eager to sample more. I could _feel_ my nervousness melting away, slightly, with the growing urge to hurt this mech.

"Is that all you got, femme?" He sneered, before lunging at me.

I jumped to the side and twisted, before ducking down with a yelp and barely dodging a swipe at my head. I felt a sharp pain in my side, and cried out as my vision exploded with white spots, before shaking it off. Without even looking, I shoved my blade out, towards the source of where my pain had come from, and heard a grunt as it connected with something hard.

Without giving any more thought, I pushed, turning and shoving my blade with all my strength. As my eyes landed on Sideways, I growled, scraping my blade across his abdomen, before sliding it through a small crevice in between armored plates. Weak spot. The armor wouldn't do much to protect him there, though I wasn't really thinking that at the time. "Hardly!" I snarled.

He pulled back, spinning, and I leaned back out of the way of his blade, stumbling away as I pulled my blade free. I could hear the twins calling to me, and I was more than aware as they transformed.

"This is my battle!" I shouted, ignoring the pain in my side. I could see alerts flashing.

"Bella! He severed a coolant line!"

_**"We need medical assistance!"**_

"I'm fine!" I shouted, ignoring the rising temperature in my body. I heard their words, but brushed them off. The raising temperature was just a result from the battle, and they were reading it wrong is all. I lunged and swung both my blades in a scissor effect, but he effectively stopped me by simply raising his own blade to catch them. Then he formed a blaster with his other hand.

"It's over." He sneered.

_Really?_ His entire body tensed, and I acted quickly. I leapt into the air, bracing my feet against his body and using the momentum to climb over him, before performing a summersault in the air and landing behind him. Then I swished my blades in a scissor move again, slicing into cables across his lower back.

Sideways lurched with a scream, and stumbled, staggering as energon dripped down his frame. He lurched around and glared at me, before raising his blaster in a lightning quick move.

I barely had time to duck, my senses being overtaken by a sluggishness. I felt really hot now, and warnings blared in my vision. _Okay, maybe he did hit something..._. However, Sideways was clearly lagging himself, and it encouraged me. _I can do this! I'm not going to let a little cut slow me down! I _can't_!_

He aimed again, and I flipped back. Flipping as a human was part of my hand-to-hand training. As a bot, it was harder, because we were made of denser materials, so it took a little more energy to throw your body into the position you needed to actually _flip_. Not to mention, when you're over a millions times the size you were, you really need to keep an eye on where you landed.

In this case, I was lucky. I flipped back, barely missing being shot, and when I landed, I crouched and raised a blade to block another shot. Then I had to raise my other to quickly deflect another shot. Soon, I was constantly staggering about, doing my best to dodge his blasts.

Why hadn't Ironhide taught me _this_? Okay, he taught me hand-to-hand, concerning giant robots and sensitive, important areas to aim for, and he taught me swordsmanship, but what about blasters? He'd never taught me about those, and considering blasters seemed to be a 'Cons' best friend...

_**"Should we intervene now?"**_ Sunstreaker _might_ have sounded smug, if he wasn't sounding worried and damn annoyed. _**"Before he blasts our mate a new sparkling chamber?"**_

"Would you shut _up_?" I snarled at him, summersaulting. I crashed painfully into a building, my duller senses causing me to be distracted, and winced at both the pain, _and_ the fact the building crumbled under my weight. I couldn't help but yelp in pain, and both Autobots seemed ready to lose it. I could even hear their restraint in their voices. _Damn it!_

_**"Just stating a fact. If this keeps going much longer, I don't know if I'll be able to hold back."**_

_**"Yeah, trust me, I can feel him struggling."**_

I guess it was a good thing I didn't have that bond. If I was distracted now, imagine how I would have been with _their_ emotions clouding me.

_**"You two, I doubt your comments are helping Bella. Bella, your internal temperature is rising dangerously. Either end the battle now, or I fear I will have to order the twins to end it for you."**_ Optimus' voice made me realize we were gathering a rather large audience.

But it's not like it bothered Sideways. If anything, he seemed to enjoy putting on a show for them.

My body was beginning to burn hotly, to the point of pain, and I found myself panting as Sideways made a show of lowering his blaster with a sneer.

"Had enough little femme?" He wasn't being merciful. It seemed the Autobots were determined to stay out of it until a certain point. I guessed when it was clear I wasn't able to fight anymore. He was cocky. That much was for sure. Then again, I _did_ note a hint of desperation flashing across his optics, and I _know_ I wasn't just seeing things.

"I should...ask you that." I grunted and hauled myself to my feet, painfully slowly. "You're...surrounded. Even if I...fall, they'll get you." I smirked now, feeling a new confidence flow through me. _Maybe I can use that against him. _"You never know...when one of them...w-will decide to e-end this...battle for me, and there's nothing I...I can do to stop t-them."

"I can kill you." He snarled and raised his blaster.

"I'm not a Prime." He paused, clearly confused, even as I straightened and raised my blades. "Even...if I'm o-offlined, Optimus still...lives. It won't...end the A-Autobots, and you'll still die." I felt an almost viscious triumph flow through me, and it scared me a little. I didn't know if it was adrenaline, or what.

That uncertainty flashed across his optics again, and he glanced around. "I..." He snarled. "I won't give in."

"G-Good." Something flashed brightly in my optics, and my spark gave a sharp jolt, causing me to sway a little. I shook it off, gasping for breath. "Because neither will I!" Running forward, I turned my blade and used it like a club, batting away his blaster. He seemed stunned by my movement, but I didn't give him a chance to think.

Swinging my other blade, I barely caught him in the side of the throat, as he leaned back, before lashing out with my other in a stabbing motion, catching him in the side. My moves were sluggish. Or maybe he was just really fast, but I still managed to knick another line.

"Slagging pain in the aft femme!" He snarled.

Before he could bring his blaster around, I swung again, and this time my aim was dead on. I hit him again in the abdomen, but my blade slid in further. Pushing my weight into it, I stepped forward, closing my eyes against the resulting explosion and shower of sparks.

A sharp pain in my chest caused my eyes to fly open, to where he was wielding a dagger, and it was jammed up in my shoulder. With a cry, I staggered back, my vision spinning, and let go of my blade as my hand instinctively raised to cover the area.

"Slaggit! That's it!"

Sideswipe, to my shock, was the first twin to snap, and he ran forward, he sliced at Sideways with a speed that made me seem super slow, and I watched as he spun, slashed and kicked, before flipping over the mech with ease, and stabbing him through the back. His own shot was spot on, and caught Sideways right through the spark chamber.

I watched, numb, as sparks showered over me, and Sideways lurched unsteadily, gurling up energon. His optics dimmed, and narrowed at me. Even as he began to fall, he raised his blaster at me.

Then, with another deafening explosion, his arm was the first thing to hit the ground, with a snarling Sunstreaker standing next to the severed limb, and a blade dripping energon in front of him.

I watched as Sideways hit the ground, his body jerking and twitching violently, before everything dimmed, and he lay still. Then, I jumped as arms surrounded me.

"Frag it, Bella! You're too stubborn for your own good!" Sideswipe was pulling the blade from my arm, which was numb, before fiddling with something in my side.

I moaned a little in pain, leaning on him as my legs got shaky. "I...had to...do it."

"Of course you did." Sunstreaker spat, coming over to hold me, with a surprising gentleness. "You're slagging annoying in that way. And if you offlined?"

"I was...sort of...c-counting on you to...make sure that didn't happen." I smiled at him, my entire body feeling heavy as I burned hotly. "I...I'm h-hot."

"Working on that. Damn it, he severed the line completely. I'll have to put you into emergency stasis lock to lower your temperature." Jolt was rushing over, but Sideswipe didn't seem ready to quit. "But trust me, when you wake up, we _are_ going to talk."

"I'd... I'd do it again." I told him firmly, trying to glare at him. "I learned from...this battle." Sideways was gone. I hurt like hell and I was _hot_, and numb in places, but... I'd learned. I'd accomplished something, and I'd taught myself I _could_ fight! There was a tiny feeling of triumph and accomplishment floating amidst everything else.

"Yeah, you're too slagging stubborn for your own good." He vented sharply and shook his head. Then, he shot me an almost sheepish look. "But...you did good, Bella. Just...watch your back next time."

I huffed a weak laugh. "If Sunny...allows there to..._be_ a next time."

He grunted something intelligable, but before I could ask him about it, my world was turning black. I felt something flip inside me, to Sideswipe's prodding, and my legs gave out.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Apparently being in emergency stasis didn't mean being completely unaware. I could still think, though I couldn't see or move. Was this what Jazz went through? I began to take back all the things I'd ever said about stasis lock being a good thing._

_I guess on the upside, it gave me a chance to think. I mean, I just thought about random stuff, mostly, like how pissed the bots would be when I woke up, and the fact I'd more or less managed to hold my own, despite my injuries. I was kind of dwelling on the latter._

_Then there's the fact that I was thinking about the Shanghai battle. It only just hit me it was happening a lot earlier than it did in the movie. Like more than a year early. And what about Sam and college? Would he even still go, with everything happening? Would the bots _let_ him, knowing the humans were the targets in the third movie?_

_What about Sam and Mikeala? The way I'd seen it, there was a lot of tension between them. And what about the movies themselves? I'd taken some of the main key components out of the second movie, so I felt reasonably certain that wasn't going to happen, but what about the third? Shockwave was my main concern, but...if it was like the other two, would it have an ancient Cybertronian power source or something involved?_

_God, I hoped not!_

_That's all we needed. The Allspark ressurrected, or another Sun Harvester! Hell, maybe this Harvester would be hiding under the Statue of Liberty this time! At least, if we had to blow it up, we'd only be dealing with our own government, right?_

_Yeah...that's not good, either._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Nov 20, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	71. Glitch Mice

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Ever heard of selective hearing?_

_I was a secret master of it._

_Yeah, the twins ripped into me the next time I woke up, but I sort of just tuned them out and stared at the ceiling. I 'uh-huh'ed and 'mhmm'ed my way through most of their speech, before Sunstreaker snarled. Then Barricade, good ol' Barricade, dropped Sunfire off, and both mechs backed off._

_Unfortunately, he dropped Rika off with her, which seemed to be her cue to start in on me in their place. However, thankfully, Sunfire was still very young and impressionable. As if sensing that, Rika glowered at me, dark looks of promises of more scolding to come, before settling down and sighing, starting in on how it had been forever since we last hung out._

_Then she started in on how we needed to have a party, or a prank, or something, and I just sat back and tuned her out too._

_I hurt. My cooling systems were still sluggish, adapting to whatever Ratchet had done to me, so I still felt tired and weak._

_Did she get the hint?_

_This _is_ Rika I'm talking about._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(A Couple Days Later)**

I sighed for what felt like the thousandth time, with Rika sitting on my chest, playing with Sunfire. "Rika, I feel like slag. Like slag left in the sun for the summer, then covered with used diapers and left to ferment." I let her groan in disgust at the mental visual. "So _now_ do you get how crappy I feel?"

"Literally." She made a face. "I'm not talking about doing make-overs you know. I doubt Mentos: the Freshmaker, would like it either." She made a face at Ratchet, who stubbornly ignored her.

"Mentos." I huffed on a laugh, ignoring the way my internal temperatures seemed to slowly rise at the effort. As I relaxed, however, they immediately cooled, even as my cooling fans switched on weakly to compensate. "Nice one. But you're right, we haven't had a chance to spend time together."

"So...we'll wait until you're better and do something. We'll even bring little Sunny."

"Just us three." I nodded. Though I was friends with Mikeala and Maggie, Rika was the sister I never had, and it was _her_ I needed to just sit down and relax with.

"At least Sideways is gone now. He was such a huge pain in the aft!" Rika sagged a little against my chest, and made a face at Sunfire, before cooing at her.

The little femme cooed right back, clicking and whistling quietly as her antennae waved back and forth. She mimicked Rika, her optics wide and shining with happiness.

"She is just..._so_ sweet!" Rika practically squealed. "I mean, she's never getting herself into trouble, she's so quiet, utterly adorable for an alien robot baby, and just...so cute!" She reached out and gently poked Sunfire's nose plates, causing the little femme to cross her optics oddly as she tried to look at the area.

I couldn't help but laugh, having to hold them in place to keep them from falling off me, and even Rika broke up laughing as Sunfire poked herself in the nose plates, as if examining the area.

"Enough, you two." Ratchet seemed distracted, as he worked on something hidden by his own frame. "Don't stress yourself, Bella."

I sobered quickly, letting my body temperature have a chance to lower, as I turned and glanced at the bot. It was hard to believe I'd made _him_ laugh. He didn't seem like the same carefree bot. Then again, with all the work he had to do, he had to have a lot on his shoulders.

Not to mention, he'd had..._how many_ lifetimes of war and pain to deal with?

That made me think of something, something I should have thought of long ago, to be honest. "Ratchet?" I waited until he actually paused and glanced over at me. "You mentioned a while back that I was really young. Just... I mean, what do you mean by that? What about the other femmes? And the mechs?"

"Well, if you want to get technical, you are much younger than even Sunfire here." He put down what looked like an oddly shaped blow torch and walked over. "You have the physical body of an adult femme Cybertronian, but you have barely been a Cybertronian for long. In a sense, you are quite naive and innocent in ways...I honestly haven't seen since Bumblebee first came to us."

"He still has such an innocence about him." Rika put in.

I nodded in agreement, but paused as Ratchet shook his head. "He used to be more so. He'd never seen anything to do with battle. When we came across him, he was the only survivor at what humans would call a 'local orphanage'. After it was wiped out by the Decepticons, that is. It was a place we used to house sparklings and younglings who'd lost their creators during the war. However, like young Sunfire here, he had no memory of what happened. One moment he was with his mother, the next, he was in our care, being taught how to protect himself."

I frowned, feeling my spark pulling uncomfortably. "That poor bot..." I wondered, vaguely, about Skids and Mudflap. They had to be about Bumblebee's age, but where as he still seemed_ so_ innocent, when he wasn't fighting, they were always joking around and fighting, and had none of that sweet naivety about them.

"I suppose he was blessed. We were able to determine his creators had been offlined, but he would never have the incident haunting his processors." Ratchet looked away, seeming disturbed. "He was a lot luckier than most younglings who survived to join the ranks of the warriors. I never thought much about it." He suddenly glanced back, his optics landing on Sunfire. "Perhaps he too was brought to us for a reason, same as Sunfire."

"Except you didn't have a femme jumping into an ocean to catch his falling frame."

"Honey, if you'd tried, you'd be in Canada by the time he came to a stop." Rika put in dryly.

Ratchet huffed his own muffled laugh and shook his head, before venting and turning back to me. "This brings me back to my point. Next to Bumblebee I'd never seen such confusion. Naivety. It fully reminded me just how innocent you are in our war, how much more so you were, before coming aware of our existence. Your first spark pull made me realize how much you _need_ to know, that you don't. It...overwhelmed me. As it will overwhelm you." He bowed his head a little. "I wish I could make your transition easier."

"I've more or less transitioned, Ratchet." I raised an eyebrow at him and smirked, pausing as he once again shook his head.

"No, you know basics about our language, fighting, our wars, our ways. You have yet to learn about proper maintenance of your internal systems, like routine purging of your oil tanks, once every six months, to keep-"

"Oh gross! Can we just...skip that part for now?" Rika made a face and shuddered. "That sounded way too much like the mechanical version of, well...I don't know, and I really don't _want_ to know!"

I giggled a little, glancing at her briefly. "Neither do I, but if it's necessary..." I trailed off, glancing back at Ratchet.

"It is, but I suppose it can wait a while." He seemed very hesitant about that, too. "I suppose my biggest point is that you have yet to learn about spark calling. What the pull signifies."

"I thought you explained that already. It's looking for a companion spark to mate with and create life with." I probably should have been less embarrassed, talking about it, but hey, I used to be human!

He nodded. "Yes, but now that you've chosen your mates, you will need to be careful. If you mate while in spark call, you have a much higher chance of conceiving a sparkling."

"By Autobot standards, am I old enough to have a sparkling?" I was an adult as a human, but obviously I wasn't human anymore. "In fanfictions and stuff-" I really needed to stop comparing fanfiction to real life, but hey! It's all I had to go on! "-the twins were generally pegged as in their late teens, early adult years. I guess, the human equivalent would be about eighteen to twenty-one. Bumblebee was estimated at the human equivalent of about sixteen to eighteen."

Ratchet seemed to think. "Well, Bumblebee's estimated equivalent age would be appropriate, although I would say the twins would be a little older than you've guessed. Perhaps only by the equivalent of an Earth year or two."

"Really? I woulda guessed younger." Rika rolled her eyes, and then giggled as Sunfire mimicked her again.

"Sweety..." I tapped Sunfire on her back lightly, causing her to coo sweetly and roll over and glance up at me. I shook a finger in her face, causing her to swipe at it, and laughed a little. "Don't mimick Auntie Rika. When her face gets stuck like that, I don't want yours following suit." I laughed a little more when Rika flipped me off behind Sunfire's back.

"To answer your question, you are old enough to have a sparkling, if you so desired. However, I would request you wait until you know more about sparkmerging, carrying a sparkling, and caring for one after it's been born. It's remarkably similar to caring for a human sparkling, just out of the womb, but there are differences, and in a time of war, it's imperitive you know everything you can."

I froze then, my fingers gently pressed against Sunfire's belly. _A time of war..._ It definitely wasn't an ideal time to carry or berth a sparkling, by anyone's standards. If I had a choice in the matter, I'd never dream of bringing a sparkling into the world, during a time of war. What kind of life would it be for that little one?

However, for all I knew, the war could carry on for millenia. If all remaining femmes decided not to birth until after the war, who was to say it would ever end? All us femmes coud offline before it ended, for all _any_ of us knew. Without a next generations to carry on the ways of the Autobots, would it all end with Optimus and his troops?

Who was I to even consider putting that kind of burden on a sparkling?

The more I thought about it, the more I shied away from having a sparkling of my own. How could I bring one into the world with a war going on? Yet, how could I not? I could plan to never have sparklings, and if Autobot mating was anything like human, I could still get pregnant.

"Whatever happens, happens. You can teach her till she's blue in the face, and she'll still learn best by experiencing it herself." Whether Rika saw the troubled look on my face or not, she seemed to come to my rescue, turning the topic and attention towards her.

"My teaching would have no effect on whatever armor color Bella choses." Ratchet put in dryly. "And yes, though I don't understand what it means, I'm fully aware it's a human expression. I've heard enough of them from the two of you alone to feel the need to search up any and all expressions." He made a face then.

"Wow, look at that!" Rika made a mock shocked face, and stared up at him. "Whose to say you can't teach an old dog new tricks, eh Peppermint?"

I snorted, and grimaced a little as my internal temperatures rose, once again causing my cooling fans to switch on sluggishly. Shaking my head, I couldn't help but laugh. "He's not a dog."

"Of course not, he'd make a great dane look like a freakin' chiuaua in comparison!" Then she adopted a rather evil look. "Although we could get him a dog."

"He'd shot-put it back to where ever you ordered it from, wrapped in bubble wrap, with a note to never sell to you again." I deadpanned. I was hit with the mental image of a dalmation flying through the air with a high pitched yelp, ears flapping in the wind, and giggled again.

"Hey, that reminds me, do you guys even _have_ Cybertronian version of pets?"

I nodded at Rika, catching her attention. "They had glitch mice."

"Don't ever mention those to Ironhide." Ratchet warned, though his lip plates trembled.

"Wait, Ironhide?" Rika was abruptly sitting up, and if she'd had antennae, they'd be perked right up in interest. "Ironhide? The big bad weapons specialist?" When Ratchet nodded at her, her eyes glazed over with a gleam in them. "As in, big, nasty, shoot-first-ask-questions-later-and-blame-it-on-Jesse's-lack-of-coordination Ironhide?"

I made note of the familiarity of which she spoke about Jesse Foster, and once again felt bad. They'd obviously grown closer since coming to the base, and I still had yet to find out just _how_ close.

"Yes, what part of that did I not make clear?" Ratchet growled in annoyance.

"Oh I heard you, I just don't believe it. The big tough guy actually turns into a _femme_ around glitch mice?"

Ratchet looked momentarily amused, before seeming to sober up. "They _can _be rather detrimental to the health of a bot. They get into the wiring and chew through it." Then he frowned. "We've actually had mechs fall into emergency stasis due to the damage they cause." Then he shook his head. "But for the most part, they are relatively harmless."

"Which makes it all the more hilarious." Rika grinned evilly.

The door gave off a small sound before sliding open, and as if Primus was laughing with us, Ironhide walked in. He paused, seeing Ratchet spin away, and watching as Rika doubled up laughing her ass off, before shooting me a look. "Do I wanna know?" He asked gruffly, folding his arms over his chest.

I was about to answer him, telling him he really _didn't_, when Rika beat me to it.

"Oh, there's no worry. Ratchet was just telling us about Bella's spark pull thingy." I flicked her lightly in the back, with a sour look.

"Thanks, traitor."

She grinned at my sarcasm, before winking at me and turning back to Ironhide. "But it's no big de-Oh my God! Glitch mouse!" She jumped up and pointed sharply at him, her face twisting into something remarkably resembling horror.

At the same time, Ironhide jumped and spun, immediately glancing to his leg where Rika was pointing, with a staticky yelp. When he spotted nothing there, he spun, stomping his leg on the ground and cursing, before freezing solid as Rika and I both busted up laughing. He slowly glanced up, optics narrowing, and let out a growl, that cut off half way when Ratchet snorted on muffled laughter.

He paused, staring at the back of the shaking yellow medic, before shaking his head. "One too many blows to the head." He muttered, before pointing at Rika and I warningly, turning, and leaving the room.

At that, I cracked up even harder.

"Oh lord! Ratchet, we gotta build fake glitch mice! Can you just _imagine _Ironhide's reaction to waking up covered in glitch mice!" Rika was cackling evilly, and Sunfire watched her warily, almost a little afraid, as the little femme climbed up my chest.

Ratchet actually went still, before chuckling even harder. "I'm not suicidal, thank you." He retorted, before returning to his work. "And human or not, he might just offline you for trying something like that."

"Pfft, it'd totally be worth it!"

"Only if Chromia's there for it." I mused, causing Rika to smirk at me. I could feel my own lips plates pull up. "Ever notice just how he puffs up his chest plates around her, and acts even more macho? Can you just imagine his horror to waking up with glitch mice all over him, and Chromia laughing her aft off at his girlish shrieks?"

"Yes, and I'd be having to attempt to console the twins about the sudden and violent offlining of their femme." Ratchet gave me a dirty look, though his optics were shining. "Must you encourage her?"

"Why not?" I shrugged a little, still grinning. "It's fun!"

"Until somebot loses an optic." He retorted as he turned back to his work.

I nodded, not the least bit put out. "Then it's hilarious!" He gave me a look, and I waved him off with a giggle, before sagging back on the berth and letting my cooling fans do their job to keep my internal temperatures down.

We kind of lapsed into a silence after that. A single glance at Rika and I just _knew_ what she was planning. The evil grin fixed to her features was information enough to know this was one prank I should probably stay out of. If just to stay online long enough to watch Sunfire grow up to be a heartbreaker. Ratchet seemed to lose himself in his work, and Sunfire curled up for a nap.

Not long after that, the twins returned. They didn't say much to me, but leaned down to press their foreheads against mine and give me the best kisses they could with their true bodies. They took sleeping Sunfire and exhausted Rika, and left again, letting me rest.

But was resting what I did?

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Worries._

_They clouded my mind. I'd happily allowed myself to forget about the upcoming movies and threats. We'd taken Megatron out of the equation, and the Sun Harvester. Without Megatron to coordinate the ambush against Prime, and without Sam being infected, giving any of the Decepticons a target, they had no way of outnumbering and killing Prime. At least, not that I could see._

_But if the second movie was bust, why was at least some of it still happening? What about the third movie?_

_Had I stopped there _being_ a third movie?_

_Primus, I hope so!_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Nov 30, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	72. Other Interrogation Methods

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Boredom._

_So...damn...boring._

_I'm better now, thanks to Ratchet the miracle worker. However, I made a point of avoiding Rika, until I heard Ironhide screaming like a little femme. It _was_ pretty funny how Chromia had to be carried out of the room by her sisters, because she was laughing too hard to even stand on her own. However, having to grab Rika and run like hell wasn't my idea of fun._

_I spent two days avoiding Ironhide's wrath, only for the twins to paint him hot pink the next time he was in recharge, and effectively distract him from us._

_Did I ever mention how much I love those two, sometimes?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**(A Week Later, ?)**

_**"We've had nothing but trouble from those slagging Autoscum. Especially since that unusual femme joined them."**_ Starscream sneered to himself, as he held the forced communications link open, wincing at the pressure the other bot was putting into his processor. He didn't _want_ to tell him any of this. Pit, he didn't _want_ to be hearing from this bot at all! Unfortunately, it seemed Primus was against him. _**"We've recently been made aware of actions by the Autobots in Egypt and they found some sort of ancient Cybertronian machine. We didn't have a chance to do more than run a basic scan, before they activated a jammer and began to disassemble it. I've also heard they've removed Megatron's body, and once again seemed to expect us, because the blew the living slag out of what was left of it."**_

_**"You did not retrieve?"**_

_**"Too many Autoscum. They blew his processors to scrap, before hauling his remains into one of their cargo jets and taking off. We could have recovered his remains, but not even a shard of the Allspark could have repaired **_**that**_** damage. And let me remind you, we haven't even found out where they're keeping the shard I watched Prime pull from Megatron's chest plates."**_ He sneered again, this time in annoyance. He could have worked around Megatron, but having a shard of the Allspark would have done a world of good. With Soundwave's betrayal, however, any chance of hacking Earth's communications dissipated.

Not that their communications were all that complicated, but they had firewalls and defences implimented that stopped anyone but an experienced communications officer from hacking into their more secured channels. Especially now that the Autobots had implimented their own securities into the system.

_**"We don't need the shard. It seems..."**_ There was a strange hesitation to the voice. _**"The Fallen has...disappeared. No one is certain where he's gone, or why. It is assumed he's give up on you." **_The tone was emotionless, but the pressure in Starscream's processor mounted painfully. _**"He seems to have given up." **_

That hardly seemed like the Fallen. He'd had a grudge against the Primes and Autobots for far too long to just give up, but who was he to judge the original Decepticon? Maybe his age had finally caught up to him, and his processor was malfunctioning. Still, Starscream was willing to bet his life the Fallen hadn't simply 'given up'. Something tugged at him that there was something wrong with that statement, and the bot giving the statement to him sounded a little...odd for him, but he ignored it.

He wouldn't be surprised if there was one day a surprise attack on Earth, if only because the Fallen believed in holding grudges and getting revenge.

He'd just have to make sure he made himself scarce around that time.

_**"**_**I**_**, on the other hand, am on my way. I have not yet given up. We will defeat Prime once and for all, and take over the pathetic planet. And do you know **_**how**_** we are going to do that?"**_

_No, and quite frankly I don't care._ With a muffled growl, Starscream turned and paced through the darkened quarters, taking refuge in his solitude and otherwise silence. _**"No..."**_ He cringed again. _**"My lord. I don't."**_ He hated the words more, directing them at this bot than even at Megatron. _**"How will we do that?"**_

_**"Your decision to piggy back a Decepticon signal, hidden, on the Autobots' sensor network was uncalculated, and a rather ingenius move. As such, chances are low the Autobots have found it yet, and I have the coordinates for the planet. There is hope for you yet. Thus, when I arrive, we will gather our troops and we will gather what Allspark shards we can."**_

He paused, startled. He hadn't even searched for Allspark shards. He'd been certain the one the Autobots pulled from Megatron's chest plates was the only one.

The pressure increased once again, causing him to hiss in pain. _**"You didn't sense them?"**_ The annoyance mounted over the link. _**"And I thought there was more to you than the moron Megatron described."**_

_**"Watch your-ahhh!"**_ Starscream cried out in pain, clutching at his head as agony shot through him. He gasped, warning off his trine mates who immediately sent him inquiries, asking if he was okay.

_**"Watch your tone with me, you useless oversized sparkling! You failed to sense the Allspark shards, that is not my problem. However, I suggest you do something about it. Find as many as you can; Get them before the Autobots do. Then we can start building our army on Earth. I arrive soon, get your act together, or I will offline you myself. Unlike Megatron, I won't tolerate your failure!" **_There was a painful pressure again, before the presence let up and disappeared.

Breathing heavily, Starscream blinked wide optics. The outburst had been unexpected, and definitely out of character. He felt like something was off, but pushed it aside as paranoia.

With one more snarl, Starscream massaged his head, still feeling the strain on his processor. "I swear by Primus I'll offline him myself." Then he paused, optics flashing as he smirked. "_After_ we retrieve the Allspark shards."

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

"Tell me about it." I sat on my berth, between the berths of the twins, as Sideswipe worked on sharpening his blades, and Sunstreaker worked on polishing his armor. They each sat on their berths, and I sat facing Sunstreaker, as he slowly worked the wax into the armor on his arm. "The latest mission, I mean."

He raised an unimpressed optic ridge, pausing in the waxing as he glanced up at me. "So you can join us?"

I pouted. "You don't want me there?"

"You're still healing from the _last_ mission you insisted on going on." His optics narrowed.

"So? If that's the case, Optimus can refuse me _if_ I wanna go. I'd still like to hear about it." He glared at me, though the look seemed more exasperated than annoyed, and vented, before turning his gaze back to his work. "Please?" He moved his hand slowly along his pristine yellow armor, shining it to perfection with slow, deliberate movements. "Sunny?"

"He's not gonna give in that easily Bells." Sideswipe's amused voice came from behind me. "I'll tell you if you want."

I looked over my shoulder and considered it, before shaking my head. Then I winked at him and got up, turning back to Sunstreaker. _I am a femme. Femmes have their ways..._ "Sunny..." I lowered my voice, all but purring his name, and watched as he seemed to stiffen, his movements faltering. He still refused to meet my optics, and I stepped over, swaying my hips deliberately with every step.

"Oh _Primus_!" There was an audible moan from behind me, and I glanced back at Sideswipe again with a smirk.

As new as this all was to me, it was actually a lot of fun. I was a woman, no matter what species, and I knew that again, no matter what species, women held a certain charm over men. I'd never really to use it as a human, but now that I was here... I swayed my hips, watching as Sides' optics zoned in on the spot and burned brightly, before turning back to Sunny. I walked up to him. "Sunny?" I let that purr fill my voice as I trailed my fingers over the edges of his helm lightly.

"Forget it, Bella. I'm not telling you." He pulled away.

"Aww..." I pouted again, before gently grabbing his arm. He resisted, but only slightly, as I pulled it to the side. Then I turned around and sat between his legs, pressing myself up against him and wiggling a little, before pulling his arm across me. The groan, this time, belonged to both mechs. "Don't you trust me?" I pulled the cloth from his other hand, feeling the heat of his chest against my back as I slowly drifted the cloth over his arm lightly, before gently pressing down, swiping it across an area he hadn't even started yet.

There was no reply, but I felt the heat of his body wrapped around me, the tell tale tingle of his chest against my back. He held still, stiff and rigid against me, and I knew his attention was more on my actions than my words.

I really would have to thank Ratchet. During my recovery, he gave me another data packet. This one was more about Cybertronian anatomy, and despite my reservations turning into undiluted horror as I read it, I knew it would come in handy for a multitude of reasons. For one, it told me what areas could be the most painful, with the slightest amount of work, and what areas were sensitive to pleasureable touches.

So as I worked the wax into Sunstreaker's arm, I let the cloth ghost over a sensitive wire on the inside of his arm, along where the main artery in a human arm would be. I felt his chest heat a little when I applied a little pressure to the bared area of the cable. "Won't you tell me?" I mused, purring, as I ran my fingers firmly along the bared cable, letting them slip into crevices to brush against more bundles of sensitive wires. "About the mission?"

"What? The, uh..." I felt him shiver. The clasps that held the armor to his protoform snapped open, sluggishly, causing the armor to come lose, and more cables to be bared.

I shot Sideswipe a smirk, feeling Sunstreaker breathing against my throat. I felt my own body heating in response, but stubbornly ignored it. The bright look in Sideswipe's optics told me that my words and actions were affecting more than one bot. "The mission. What's the mission, Sunny?"

"We're...going to meet up with...new Autobot arrivals."

I paused then, feeling the inaudible groan he let out. "But wait, everyone whose supposed to be here already, is."

He stiffened even more, and let out a growl, before pulling his arm tightly around my waist, trapping me against him. I felt his armor slip off, and it fell down my lap and hit the ground with a clang, but he didn't seem to notice. "Slaggit, Bella. Nice work." He rumbled against me, his chest burning hot. "I see you've been learning. Do I dare ask how?"

I blinked and smirked. "Data packets. So, you gonna tell me who you're gonna meet?" I couldn't help but frown at the idea. If they were all already here, who were they meeting? I knew the sensor net was sending out a continuous message to other Autobots, and a strengthened one at that. A new Autobot must have responded, but... "Who is it?"

"We're not sure yet." Sideswipe popped in, and I could have laughed when I felt Sunstreaker's head fall against my shoulder, as he let out an exasperated sigh. "Relax, brother. She could have gone to Prime for the answers, but she's asking us. If she wants to go along, I say we let her. We won't be separated, and we'll outnumber any 'Cons in the area."

"And knowing Bella, she'll still end up critically injured." Sunstreaker's muffled voice issued up from my shoulder.

I rolled my eyes and nudged him with my shoulder, before wiping the cloth against his arm again, this time over his bared protoform. I was amazed at how violently he shivered. Then again, the data packet had mentioned protoforms were far more sensitive than they looked. "I'm an Autobot now, right? Ironhide let's Chromia go out on missions."

"We're not Ironhide!" He snapped, pulling away like he was burned. In a graceful movement, he stood and swung his leg out from behind me, before standing in front of me, glowering. "And you're not Chromia! She's had millenia of fighting experience!"

I stood sharply. "Has she always? Was she _always_ some amazing warrior, or did she have to start someplace as well? I got hurt bad, yeah, but I survived! I fought Sideways and I held my own! It's a _start_!" Then I paused and shook my head, sinking down on myself. "Don't you trust me at all? I need to learn to take care of myself, or I'll never be able to survive in your war." My voice quieted, and my heart pulsed hotly. "If you really love me, you have to realize this. There's only one way I'm gonna learn."

"I say she goes."

Glancing up at Sideswipe, I blinked, shocked.

He looked at me with an encouraging look, his optics shining with warmth that comforted me immediately. "I trust you, and Sunny does too. We're just worried. But you're right, if you don't get out and get experience, you'll never learn how to protet yourself." He nodded slowly, before sitting back on his berth and wiping a cloth over his blade, shining it.

Sunstreaker vented sharply, turning his glare on his twin. He just stood there, glaring at Sides, for what felt like forever. Then he shook his head, and glanced back at me, his optics softening. This softer side to Sunny was definitely something I'd never have written, and something I'd never read. I honestly never thought he _had_ this kind of warmth inside him, despite somehow...knowing better.

"He's right. As much as I hate it, we're at war. I don't want you defenceless. You can come along on the mission, _if_ Optimus clears it." With another sigh, he moved around me and sat back on the berth, reclining back against the reinforced walls. His armor almost blended in with the shades of orange, red and yellow behind him, as he started waxing his leg armor.

Shifting, I slid back on the berth, and back against him, causing him to start. Slipping my fingers behind his one knee, I felt him jolt, and heard him hiss, before he quickly bent the leg to get it out of my grip. I grinned sheepishly, realizing I'd hit one of those areas that a wrong touch could cause a lot of pain to. Then I grabbed the rag, and began on his armor.

"Why...?"

"Because I want to." I shrugged a little, as I worked over his armor.

"You know, you could use a waxing too." It was stated matter of fact, but I raised an eyebrow and stopped working.

"Is that an insult to my paint job?" I kept my voice carefully neutral. I knew that wasn't how he meant it, his tone gave away the _other_ meaning to his words, but that didn't mean I couldn't tease him...

He paused. "What? No!"

Sideswipe began to laugh over on his berth, and I glanced over to see him shaking his head at me. "See, he can't see your face, so he thinks you're serious." He pointed to his own optics. "I know better! Nice one though."

I giggled a little, feeling Sunstreaker vent behind me. "I was only teasing, Sunny." I wiped the rag over his lower leg armor, polishing it to a shine, before 'accidentally' slipping into another sensitive area. As he jerked, I giggled and apologized. "Oops. Looks like I'm all thumbs today." I grinned at Sideswipe, even as I felt Sunstreaker heave a heavy breath behind me.

"I'm not complaining." He spoke in a husky tone, and I shivered a little.

His arms wrapped around me tightly, and I leaned back into his embrace. I thought about the fact that Starscream's words and touches no longer haunted me, and wondered if I could mate with them now. Then I thought about the possibility of ending up with spark.

Was I ready for that?

I guess there was no way to really know, except to try, but I honestly wasn't sure if I was okay with trying. At least, for the time being.

"Is this okay?" The oddly uncertain tone to Sunstreaker's voice caused me to snap back to reality, and I nodded. "Are you... I mean..." He growled softly, and I felt him shaking his head.

"Sunstreaker, ask. A question's not gonna break me."

Sideswipe stood then, subspacing his sword and walking around my berth, looking frighteningly sober. "Unless it's the wrong one." He sat at his brother's feet, and I could feel the warmth of his body against my legs. Hesitantly, he reached out.

I watched his hand curiously as it approached me, touching the seam in my chest plates gently. Heat burst within me, and my cooling fans switched on noisily in response. I expected the twins to laugh, but they didn't. Sunstreaker held me even tighter, and Sideswipe very gently trailed his fingers down the seam in my chest plates.

I continued to watch, embarrassed, as the catches to the armored plates flipped open as his fingers brushed against them, and I ducked my head a little, knowing the implications. But again, he didn't laugh. If anything, his optics burned even more intensely than before.

"Is _this_ okay?" He asked softly, moving forward to rest his forehead against mine.

I was almost panting by now, the heat overwhelming me. It wasn't the same as when I fought Sideways, though. This wasn't a dangerous heat. It was all together different. "I..." I shivered as his fingers gently slipped between my chest plates. "I... Yes, but..." I hesitated, and he stopped.

He vented. In fact, they both vented, and I felt his hand withdrawing. "I'm sorry. It's still too soon, we understand."

"No!" I grabbed his hand, causing his head to jerk up and him to stare at me with wide optics. "You don't understand!" I was frustrated now. The heat of what he was doing was fading, instead being replaced by a heat generated by helpless anger. "It's not _that_, okay?" I held his hand at my chest plates, ignoring the fact my spark light was seeping out from between them. "I...just...what if I end up with sparkling? _That_ I'm not ready for." The idea was actually frightening.

Sure, I had Sunfire, but she was older. If anything happened to me, she could run and hide, and would only end up in another good home anyways. I knew she'd be okay. But a new sparkling? One that needed me to survive? One that needed my energon to feed it? My hold to keep it safe? One that couldn't walk or talk?

No, right now, with everything going on, _that_ was too much.

Both twins paused again, but even though I couldn't see Sunstreaker's face, I could see Sideswipe's. I could see the thoughtful frown as he gently retracted his hand.

I hooked the clasps on my armor, feeling oddly let down, but at the same time justified.

"I never thought of that. You don't want a sparkling?" He looked at me, his optics blank.

"It's not that. I mean...one day, yeah. I _am_ a femme, you know." I shot him a look, before sighing and relaxing against Sunstreaker, who didn't protest the move. "I want a sparkling one day. Until then, I have Sunfire. It's just... I guess I'm afraid. I don't know the first thing about taking care of a sparkling. Especially during a time of war. Mating with you both is gonna be a big step on it's own, and I'm going to need time to adjust to that. I just don't wanna rush into things, I guess."

Sunstreaker hummed behind me. "We _are_ a lot to handle."

I smirked at his smug tone, and nudged him with my head. "I know. Ratchet and Ironhide just _love_ to regale me with stories about your pranks."

Sideswipe chuckled and shook his head, and Sunstreaker snickered almost evilly behind me. "Maybe, but it looks like we've met our match with you." His optics shone as he gazed at me.

I grinned, feeling complimented. "What can I say? I learned from the best. Even if I didn't know they existed at the time." I smirked at him, and laughed a little. "So when's this mission?" The mood had been ruined by now, and my chest plates had already closed and the clasps locked again.

Sunstreaker vented. "Not gonna give up on that, are you?"

"Did you honestly expect me to?"

"No." He sounded more amused than anything. "I don't suppose I did. It's tomorrow. If you're going, talk to Optimus tonight."

It was my turn to sigh. It was already getting late, and 'talk to Optimus tonight' would mean having to leave now, before he turned in for the night. I wasn't looking forward to leaving my new little nest, but I really _did_ want to know who was coming.

Heaving a sigh, I reluctantly pulled away from Sunstreaker, laughing a little when I actually had to fight to break free of his grip. He let out a low whine, and I twisted in his hold to nuzzle the side of his neck affectionately, before standing.

"No time like the present, I suppose."

With reluctance, the twins allowed me to leave, and I immediately set off to find boss bot.

_Dear Diary,_

* * *

_Aww poopie!_

_Apparently, just because I wanted something, didn't mean I was going to get it._

_I figured, reconnaissance mission meant easy permission. I mean, no fighting expected, so why would anyone have an issue with the newbie going along?_

_I figured wrong._

_Optimus, to my surprise, said no. He stated there were already more than enough bots going, and they needed some to remain behind and guard the base. Translation? The twins got to go, and I was stuck on babysitting duty._

_Gee, is this how Sunstreaker felt, at first? You know, having to watch over the sickly little human femme?_

_Oh well. As disappointed as I was, at least he filled me in on what was going on. Apparently the new sensor network, set up long before they probably would have even thought of it before, had caught the attention of at least one Autobot. They couldn't say for sure who it was, but were going to meet them regardless._

_I was beyond disappointed and put out, but I guess looking on the bright side, I'd finally have my chance to sit down and relax with Rika._

_Something we were long overdue for._

_Surprising how my disappointment faded at the thought of interrogating my best friend about Jesse._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Dec 7, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	73. Feelings

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : FYI: I haven't really seen Shockwave in action. If I ever did as a kid, well...hell if I remember. Point is, I don't know his persona. I've read about him, but he's still hard to write for, so he'll probably be way OOC in my story. -.-'

Also, thanks everyone for sticking with me. I know I haven't really been replying to reviews, like I used to, or making notes or anything to answer questions. These past few months have been a little chaotic at times, and the next few won't be any less so. This time of year, 'chaos' is really the only term I can use to describe my life. But I wanted to leave a note, apologizing for the unusual update times, and thanking you all for sticking with me. This story has...a little ways to go yet.

Also, don't...look for any real steady plot just yet. I think, right about this point, I was floundering for ideas. The muse came from a discussion I had, I believe, with **AnasaziDarkmoon** about an old horror movie I watched once, that dealt with under water explorers and a man-made virus that killed and mutated them, and...um, I'm going to stop talking about it before I give it away... But lets just say that the upcoming ending is going to be creepy, and different.

ENJOY!

~*Insert Evil Laugh*~

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Instincts._

_I always trusted mine, and more often than not, they never let me down. Sure, I had a few mishaps. Just look at Dead End and what _could_ have happened to Sunstreaker. However, as much as I tried to push the thought off, I couldn't shake the feeling something was still coming._

_I'd felt it for a while. I'd stopped one movie from happening, but the Decepticons were nothing, if not resourceful. I knew, deep down, they'd find another way to get what they wanted. Just because Megatron and the Sun Harvester were out of the picture, didn't mean Starscream was._

_Still, I tried to play it off as paranoia. I was a fangirl. I'd read the fanfictions. I'd looked up the deviant arts. I'd watched the movies, and as a child, I'd watched the cartoons, even if I couldn't remember _those_ too well anymore. As a fangirl, I felt I was paranoid. In almost all stories I'd read, just when you let your guard down was when the worst would happen._

_I kept feeling like...if I stopped worrying, _then_ we'd be attacked. _

_But my point is, with each passing day, that sense of foreboding was getting worse. Hadn't I already done what the Primes wanted? They wanted me to change things, and Sunny's appearance, as well as Boomer's, had more than proven I had._

_So why couldn't I shake the feeling something bad was gonna happen?_

_And it was going to happen soon._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(?, Normal POV)**

_"Have you found anything?"_ A dark crimson optic glared down at the bot before him, and he stared emotionlessly at the obviously fearful look on Starscream's face, before the smaller jet hid it.

_"We've recalibrated our sensors and have sensed a single shard in the city. It appears to be in a 'store' that sells pre-owned items."_ He made a face._ "The majority of us haven't yet perfected our holoforms enough to approach such a place undetected."_

Shockwave frowned, thinking. _"The most logical answer would be to simply destroy the store and the humans within and simply take the shard."_

Now Starscream cringed. _"We need to be careful...my lord. The humans are remarkably..." _He grimaced in distaste for giving the organics _any_ credit, but he certainly wasn't stupid. _"They are resourceful. They have weapons capable of causing great damage to Cybertronians. They kept Megatron frozen in their prison for generations."_

_"Megatron was damaged when they captured him."_

_"They also captured the Autobot scout, Bumblebee."_

_"Bumblebee was distracted when they captured him. Again, the solution is simple."_ Though his face was featureless, the single optic held more than enough in it to tell Starscream Shockwave was beginning to get annoyed. _"We do not allow anything to distract us. We go in and take what we're after."_

_"And if it alerts the Autobots to what we're up to? To the fact there's more than one shard?"_ Starscream straightened in defiance, gritting his dentals.

There was a moment of silence. Starscream could have cried with relief when Shockwave didn't offline him right away, but then again, the latter had always had a more scientific approach, rather than hostile.

_"Yes, that would be detrimental to our plans. We are not yet ready for a confrontation with the Autobots. They are greatly outnumbered, by my calculations, but have proven in the past that numbers mean nothing. Fine, we shall work on our holoforms, perfect them as quickly as possible, and gather that shard. In the mean time, track it's location constantly."_

Starscream bowed his head, hearing the larger bot as he turned and walked away. Once he was certain he was alone, he raised his head, optics flashing. _Yes...'my lord'._

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

"Well, you seem happy to be here."

I glanced up from staring blankly at the wall, and sighed when I spotted Rika rolling her eyes. "Sorry. I just...can't shake this feeling."

"Wanna talk about it?" She sat next to me, on her bed, and stared at me with concen. "I mean, you know more about all this than I do, if you have a bad feeling..."

"That's just it. I dunno. I mean, I could just be paranoid. It wouldn't be unheard of."

Again she rolled her eyes. "The only time I've ever seen you paranoid was with that Ferrari, and look how that turned out." She looked around her base quarters pointedly, as if to prove a point.

I had to nod and give her that one. I was paranoid about that Ferrari, and look at where I was now. Still... "This isn't the same. I haven't _seen_ or _heard_ anything to give me this feeling. By all rights I _should_ feel more at ease. I mean, I'm almost positive we stopped the second movie. There's no way they can bring Megatron back from the dead, and the Harvester is gone. Without that... But, the Fallen is still out there."

"And he's..."

I had to keep reminding myself that despite living among the bots, Rika didn't know what I did. She wasn't there for my talks with Optimus, and I'd never sat down and talked to her, in depth, about it all. "Well, he's the original Decepticon. He used to be a Prime, millenia ago." I saw her confusion and realized I'd have to explain. After all, the Primes were the good guys, and the Fallen...not so much. "When the Cybertronians first came across our planet, it was in search of a source of Energon, their fuel."

"Wait, hold up." Rika raised a hand, frowning. "They've been here before?"

"Yeah, long story short, they were here around the time of the barbarians." I made a face. "Point is... The Primes set up a Cybertronian machine the movie called the 'Sun Harvester' which would draw the energy of the sun into it, and convert it into Energon. Unfortunately, there was no chance Earth would have survived the sun then...well, more or less ceasing to exist. Every bit of life would have frozen to death in no time."

"And they allowed that? I thought they were the good guys!" Rika sat up sharply, looking horrified.

Shooting her a look, I sighed. "Would you let me finish? They _didn't_ allow it! When the first barbarians showed themselves, the Primes realized Earth was young but had potential for sentient life, and decided not to harvest our sun. However, the Fallen didn't like that. He tried to argue but they didn't listen, so he started a war, with a faction of the bots who agreed with him. They fought, but the Primes managed to hide the key to the Harvester, the Matrix, and used their bodies to protect it."

"Their bodies? So they died, right? How are they protecting it now?"

"Well, their bodies, I think, mask the energy the Matrix would give off, and keeps the Decepticons from finding it." I paused then. "That reminds me, Optimus should have that Matrix. I'll have to mention it to him later." I wasn't too worried. Without the destructive lock it went in, the key would hopefully remain safe where it was.

Rika was seemingly lost in thought. She didn't have any immediate questions, and I didn't really know what else to say for the moment, so the room lapsed into a comfortable silence.

Then I thought about what I'd wanted to ask her before, and raised an eyebrow with a smirk. "So what's going on between you and Jesse?" Half of the time I wasn't certain if I should be calling him Jesse or officer Foster, or what. _Was_ he even still a police officer? I doubted it, all things considered. What was his role on the base? Was he just a civilian, like Rika?

Watching as she blushed, I couldn't help but smirk wider.

"Well, we're friends. I mean, he's been really nice, and easy to get along with. He's usually training with Epps or Will though."

Now I frowned. "Training?" My original plan of teasing the truth out of her was derailed when I began to try and wonder what he was 'training' for. He hadn't had years of training as a soldier, so that couldn't be it, right? He'd never met the Autobots before Mission City, so I doubted it was something closely related to them. I didn't think 'intelligence gathering' was his field.

Don't get me wrong, he was a smart guy. Could he hit dead center of most of the shooting range targets, even the moving ones? Yes. Could he reprogram a computer in under ten minutes? No.

She nodded, leaning back against the wall. "Well he said he wants to be useful. Not really a soldier, but more informed than the other civilians. He's getting weapons training with the soldiers, and learning to work with the bots."

_Oh. _I nodded a little, thinking about that. "It's better to be prepared. Have you ever thought about doing the same?" Honestly, the idea of Rika with a weapon, able to at least partially protect herself, was a more comforting thought than Rika without a gun, hiding in terror.

Even if part of me recoiled at the thought of hyperactive, easily irked Rika with a _gun_ at _all_.

She made a face. "Um, no. I'm not a gun person." She shook her head with a look of determination that told me not to push my luck. "How about you, anyways? What's up with you and the twins?"

It was my turn to blush, but I didn't duck my head. I knew the entire base more or less knew something was up with us. "We're in love." It was so weird saying that. Me. With _two_ mechs. In love. But hey, for all it's weirdness...it was also nice.

"Like...all _three_ of you?" Her eyes went wide. "Geez, how does that even work? I mean...physically?"

Laughing, I shook my head and fell sideways into a lying position. "Well I don't know, really. It's not like I spent a pile of time thinking of the mechanics of it."

"Literally." She snorted. "So are you...mates, or whatever?"

"Not yet." I sighed. "We want to. I know they do, and I want to, but... I'm kinda concerned about the posibility of another sparkling. It's a war out there." I sighed and looked across the room. Part of me wanted the sparkling, and to settle down. It longed for it, but at the same time, I couldn't shake the fact we were part of a war, and it was dangerous just living, let alone getting through it pregnant, with a little sparkling depending on me.

It was worrying enough with Sunfire. I knew that as long as she was surrounded by Autobots, she'd be safe, but away from the base... Well, I didn't _take_ her away from the base, often, just because I worried. For one thing, she couldn't turn human, so I couldn't take her to a park or something. Too many questions. For another, more often than not, when I was off base, there was some reason _other_ than relaxing.

Come to think of it...

"When was the last time we had a chance to relax away from the base?"

Rika raised an eyebrow and looked at me. "Far too long. Do I wanna know what you're planning?"

"You wanted girl time, right? Why not hit the downtown mall?" I grinned at her then. "Boomer's still on base, right? Optimus said I couldn't go on the mission, but the minor twins are here, along with Ratchet and Bumblebee, so they can watch over the base. We should go have a chance to relax. I wanna do some shopping!"

She blinked at me, her mouth opening and closing a few times, before she hummed a little, and nodded. "You know we've been sitting around too long when _you_ suggest we go shopping."

"Hey!" I giggled and gently swatted at her. "I like to shop! It's not my fault you and Mikeala can make me look like a clueless ape." I rolled my eyes at her. "So what'cha say? Wanna hit the shopping district?"

She looked like she was thinking about it for a moment, before nodding and grinning brightly. "Hell yeah! But who're we gonna get to go with us?" She looked at me and nearly recoiled from whatever look was stuck to my face. "Uh-oh..."

"Did I not mention Boomer, earlier? I seem to remember he was practically glued to Jesse's hip, last time I saw him."

She made another face. "There's an awkward thought. Human-Autobot three-legged races."

I snorted on a laugh and shook my head. "That's not awkward. That's just plain painful." Heaving myself off her bed, I stood and stretched. An old habit that felt just as good as a Cybertronian as it did as a human. "Shall we go see if they're free?"

She stood quickly, only blushing a little, and I led the way out of the room.

However, I couldn't resist a quick jab. "Are you _sure_ you're _just_ friends?" She stumbled over her own two feet, and I grabbed her to steady her. "Whoa, easy there girlie. I'm just teasing." I smiled at her, even she she shot me an evil look. "It's nice to see you bonding with people here." I sighed then and slowed our walk through the base. I could see the occasional familiar face. People who were brought here so the bots could protect them.

That hadn't happened in the second movie either.

And what's worse, people were starting to show signs of discontent. Annabelle had started whimering "'Nie'" over and over at times, which Sarah explained was her favorite character 'Ernie' in a children's play that went on in the park, twice weekly. Mikeala would stare for hours on end out a window, and snap at Sam a lot...

I'd actually heard her blame _him_ for being 'abducted' to the base, before she almost recoiled at her words. Unfortunately the damage was done. I don't even know if they'd made up or not.

Judy was getting snippier with Ron, and started demanding the troops get her a giant-sized garden, if they were going to keep her prisoner. Hell, even Ron agreed. He wanted _something_ familiar to do.

Discontent was growing among the people on the base, and the longer they stayed there, the worse it got. Even now, I glanced around the main hangar and spotted Mikeala shooting Sam pained looks from her spot next to a familiar pink and black motorbike. It wasn't Arcee. I recognized it as the one she was working on in the second movie.

Sam for his own part appeared to be moping on Bee's leg, with the small bot blasting whatever music Sam asked for, worried blue optics never once leaving the boy.

He sighed, glancing at Mikeala and locking eyes on her. His own expression wasn't accusing or angry, but filled with sadness and pain. Slowly turning away, he leaned back against Bee and sighed deeply. "Numb."

I cringed at what the meaning of that particular song could mean to him. I _know_ he cared about Mikeala, so any romantic trouble had to be bad.

The small bot hummed and Linkin Park's 'Numb' started blasting out of his speakers.

I watched as Mikeala looked away as well.

"I thought those two were supposed to be together in the second movie." Rika's voice was a low murmur, almost a whisper. "They seemed _so_ happy before."

"They _were_." I sighed, frowning, worried. "But then again, I don't...think they were locked on a base in the second movie. Mikeala's dad is out there, naive to all of this. Her normal life is out there. So is all theirs." I pointed briefly to everyone who was milling around, looking almost desperate for something non-base-related to do.

"This isn't good..."

"Gee you think?" I grimaced, before catching Mikeala's eye. "What should we do?"

"Well, like you said, Mikeala likes to shop too. Maybe if we take her off base with us for a bit, things will cool off a little."

Somehow I doubted it. We needed to get these people off the actual _base_ for longer than 'a bit'. I looked around, after waving Mikeala over, and spotted a surprising lack of troops. I guessed they were out on their individual errands, though, so I didn't question it.

After all, a base wasn't going to be war ready if everyone just sat on their asses all day long. People had drills to run, missions to run, reports to fill out, damaged things that needed repairing, inventory to take stock of, cooking needed to be done... It was just never ending.

"Hey." Mikeala's voice was surprisingly subdued. "What's up?"

"Come with us. We're going shopping." Rika's empathy never ceased to amaze me.

"I...don't really feel like it." Her eyes cut back to Sam, before she turned away, shaking her head. "You probably heard what happened by now. Funny how I managed to royally screw up the one good thing that's happened to me." She sighed shakily, blinking her watery eyes.

"He knows you don't mean it." If Sam had been that shallow, I doubted he'd be alive right now, let alone have ever crushed on Mikeala. After all, she _was_ known as the evil jock concubine for some time. "He just needs time to think over everything. You two are meant to be together. Let's just go shopping for a bit, to get off the base." I grabbed her arm gently, noting she musn't have been working too hard on the bike. She barely had any grease on her.

"I should get cleaned up." She grimaced down at a splotch of grease on her hand.

"Relax. We're going shopping. Not the ritz. And no, we're not letting you get away and have a chance to hide!" Rika cackled mock evilly and grabbed Mikeala's other arm. "You're all ours now, my pretty!"

I couldn't help but smile as Mikeala actually giggled, before nodding. "Come on, we're gonna get Rika's new boyfriend to give us a ride to the mall."

"HEY!"

At this, Mikeala smirked a little, though she still looked pained. "New boyfriend? What's this?"

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I wonder if we all had a feeling something bad was coming. Despite the fact that Jesse readily agreed to take us, much to Boomer's not-so-obvious-but-still-noticeable disappointment, I couldn't shake my own feeling of impending doom._

_Okay, so maybe I'm being melodramatic, but I wasn't the only one._

_I didn't know Jesse that well, but I could tell something was troubling him, too. And Mikeala kept glancing off into space, chewing her bottom lip a little, as if distracted. Even Rika looked a little uncomfortable._

_Yeah, I know we probably weren't all thinking the same thing, but 'doom' didn't have to be representative of one event. Mikeala might well have been thinking of the end of her and Sam's relationship. In fact, the way things were going, I'd have put money on it, but I wasn't going to make that easy for them._

_Rika...well, despite knowing her as well as I did, with all these new developments, she could have been thinking of pretty much anything. Same went for Jesse. I had no idea what would be bothering _him_ so much, and part of me wondered if I wanted to know._

_I already had so much on my plate, I was beginning to wonder if I could deal with it all. Could I really handle more?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Dec 14, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	74. Shards and Doubts

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Okay, seriously my computer needs to frag off. -_-' That's the second time I've logged in to see my email and PMs disabled, and I was _not_ the one to do it. And my password is like super fricken long, with numbers AND letters! Ugh, anyways... Sorry about the late update. Computer issues, and muse issues, and trying to figure out how to take a review that personally bugged me a lot.

Note, guys?

Bella _sounds_ like Twilight's Bella, because when I came up with her, I was leaning a little on that character for inspiration and help. Okay, a lot. I do get she's a lot alike her, but I seriously don't need to _know_ if you decide you hate her because of that. Every time I hear from someone about how much they hate my story, it's because "Bella is Twilight's Bella". Also, I don't know what the guidelines for Mary-Sue are. I didn't take the time to sit down and research it, and quite honestly, I don't care. I write my stories for me. If you like them, that's great. I'm happy to see your reviews, telling me you like them. If not, I don't need a huge-aft list that contains _all_ the details as to why not.

Why?

Because it totally frags up my muse for ever writing again. Yes, I guess I'm sensitive that way. I'm sorry, but that's just the way I am. I get that you're trying to help, but all I got was all the reasons why I should never write an OC character again, because with the list I was given, I find it very hard to picture _any_ OC that isn't a Mary-Sue, unless they're a three hundred pound, pimply faced nerd, that no one likes, and can't do slag. Over the last like two weeks, I've tried my hand at several different stories, dealing with OCs, and every last one of them I've asked myself: "Is she Mary-Sue?" and the moment that thought crosses my mind, you can forget the story. My muse for it died.

So Bella's Mary-Sue because...

Everyone likes her? Funny anyone thinks that. You don't _hear_ from everyone, and I never said the bots were bowing down at her feet. As far as details... Ironhide tolerates her like he would anyone else. Ratchet _might_ like her, more for her sense of humor, than anything else. Bumblebee and Jazz like _everyone_. The Decepticons don't adore her, they just saw her as a means to an end, and Barricade likes her more because she resembles his lost sister than anything. As for Starscream? He only likes her because she was a weak link. An easy means to get _some_ form of power (or in his case, breed an army). Now? He just wants her dead.

She's completely helpless? Not completely. She's just not a super trained warrior, with millions of years of experience. You try fighting a species you barely know anything about, in a war you were _just_ thrust in, and pulling a Sideswipe. Also, if she's not super helpless, she'd be able to hold her own, and be a pretty good fighter... Wouldn't that fall dangerously close to Mary-Sue as well?

Okay, I get that I'm defensive, but I tried _really_ hard to keep my character from being Mary-Sue, and apparently she ended up as one anyways. That hurts. Now I have doubts about all my characters, because I know sweet frag all about writing one that isn't Mary-Sue. I also don't feel comfortable enough working canon to do that way, so I honestly don't know if I'll ever be able to finish/post stories again. I get that the review was trying to help, but it didn't.

And finally, plotholes?

I'm not sure if I said it before, but I put too many characters in my story. I get that. I can't have _everyone_ in there _all_ the time, or it would be too active a story to make sense of/keep up with. I'm not a professional writer. Amateur at best. What's Soundwave doing? Soundwave is in the background, doing the cha-cha. What do you think he's doing? Sunfire can't be in every chapter. Who takes a baby to missions, and possibly dangerous encounters? Yes, _almost_ every time Bella leaves the island, she gets into trouble. She's a trouble magnet, but if she weren't, that would make for one boring story.

This story, as long as it is, is bound to lose interest for a lot of people, or have plotholes, or seem Mary Sue. I _did_ try to mention I had issues about this area of the story. I don't know _all _the details, and I didn't go watch a season of the anime to get them, because the moment I did that, I'd have lost the muse for this story entirely.

Anyways, sorry about the super long rant, guys, but I'm really hurt by that review. Once more, I get that it wasn't a flame, but it felt like one. All I got were the negatives in it, and it really bothered me, as honest as it was. BUT! As I always say, I prefer honesty. I guess...if you have to be that brutal, can we not and say we did? If you decide you're not going to read my story anymore, fine. I'm not holding a gun to your head, but could you do so silently, please? That message was very discouraging to me.

Or maybe I read it wrong, but it still stung.

Anywho, here's the chapter. I'll shut up now. *Zips lips shut*

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_The thing I had to remember about shopping with Mikeala and Rika was...they preferred the bigger stores. Sears. Hot Topic. Zellers. Walmarts. ...Not the most expensive places, but definitely some of the largest. Probably not such a good idea with Decepticons hiding in the shadows, pretty much everywhere, and definitely uncomfortable on me._

_I had to remember to be _very_ careful when brushing past a customer, or squeezing between a distracted child and a cash register, to get by. I was a lot stronger now, and had to watch I didn't slip up._

_At least, on the upside, the government must not have given Mikeala her 'emergency' account yet, or whatever they called it. Apparently they had them. At least, that's what a lot of fanfictions said, but either they just hadn't come in yet, or maybe I'd changed it so they wouldn't get them._

_Who knew?_

_All I knew was... As soon as we were made aware of our cash restrictions, Rika dragged Mikeala off to the bikini section. I was eyeing some nice jeans, so I let them be. They were gone for several moments, but before I could get worried, they came back._

_Something had happened, though. Or something was said. They both had a strange gleam in their eyes as Rika grabbed my arm and dragged me off towards the exit of the store, not bothering with an explanation._

_I was more worried than anything. Were we under attack? Did they notice something?_

_-Bella_

* * *

"What's going on?" I kept my voice low, but there was no mistaking the urgency as I leaned towards Rika. I tried to glance around for Mikeala, but Rika's grip kept me facing forward, and from what I could see, I couldn't see Mikeala anywhere. "Where'd Mikeala go?"

Rika only giggled, and I relaxed immediately. If she was giggling, not a strained or forced giggle at that, then it couldn't have been anything to be worried about. "Relax. She's just picking something up, and then she'll be right behind us." She dragged me outside, and we stood, waiting.

"So you're not gonna tell me what the dragging was about?" I raised an eyebrow, smoothing out the sleeve of my form fitting pink sweater.

It had gotten later in the year, and was starting to get cooler. It was probably still hot enough to make half of Canada melt, but then again, I wasn't from Canada. It was cold enough for a sweater. 'Nuff said. And yeah, yeah, I could have adjusted internal temeratures. I honestly didn't consider it. Sue me.

She shrugged. "Well, we don't have a lot of money. It's not like we can go on a huge spending spree, y'know?"

"Uh-huh." I looked her in the eye. "And Starscream models leopard print bikinis." She spluttered, making a face, and I rolled my eyes. "I'm not buying it."

"Hell! I wouldn't either! Oh _God_, that's a horrid thought!"

Laughing at her reaction, I turned to Mikeala as she stepped out of the store, a small bag in her hand. She smiled at us, before eyeing Rika warily, the latter girl almost rolling around on the ground and wheezing loudly as she laughed.

"Do I wanna know?"

I shrugged. "She's imagining Starscream doing the catwalk to 'I'm too Sexy', in a leopard print bikini." I grimaced as the mental image of Optimus Prime popped into my head, but this time Starscream was at his side, and the two of them were strutting their stuff. "Oh dear lord, that disturbing!" I shuddered so horribly, I wouldn't be surprised if I looked like I was having a seizure.

The three of us cracked up laughing, shaking our heads and expressing our horror at the idea, before Rika grabbed my arm and led us over to the main mall. It wasn't a long walk before we found ourselves entering the mall and staring at the people milling around.

"Is there any store in particular you wanted to visit?"

I gave her a look. Her voice was casual, but I couldn't shake the feeling she was up to something. "A pawn shop?" I was fully aware that was one difference between Rika and Mikeala. Rika thought pre-owned goods were blasphemy to _shopping_, which to her was generally about getting 'new' stuff. Mikeala didn't mind them. I preferred them.

Hell, for one, they were cheaper.

Rika groaned but sighed. "Well we _are_ low on funds... Fine." She made it sound like I wanted something next to impossible, but led us to the escalators.

Riding an escalator was only a little different as a Cybertronian. For one, I could feel the minute vibrations racing up my form, from where my feet planted on the steps. For another, I was beginning to recognize command prompts that flashed across my vision.

It looked like a request to connect to the system below me. Ratchet _had_ said something about hacking basic systems being second nature to most bots, but I didn't really feel like testing that theory on an escalator full of humans.

Anyways, we headed down to the main floor of the mall, and through the smaller outlet stores, until we headed through another door out onto a different street. And yeah, I know what you're thinking. We came in on the second floor, where the upper highways connected, and left through the main doors, where a lower highway connected.

We wandered down the street, not really talking much. We had a fairly comfortable silence going on, until Mikeala stopped at a tiny pawn shop. I followed her gaze to the sign, and exchanged a shrug with her before we headed inside.

'Seedy' probably would have been a good description of the place, upon entering. The first thing I noticed was the overwhelming stench of cigarette smoke, despite the fact no one appeared to be smoking. The next thing I noticed was a tiny blip on my internal sensors, before it disappeared, but I _did_ catch one of the men in the store looking at us with blatant annoyance, before he quickly made his exit.

I still wasn't sure about a lot of these 'blips'. I recognized the Decepticons a while ago because they weren't even trying to mask their signals. Unfortunately, I learned through testing that when they _were_, I'd have a hard time noticing them, let alone identifying friend from foe.

Time and practice would make that easier, but it would still take...you know...time and practice.

And not always Cybertronians would cause my sensors to blip. Because a lot of technology used today was reverse-engineered from Megatron's own body, some of them could cause a small sensor blip as well. And apparently I wasn't the only one that had that.

But back to the present...

That one man almost ran out of the store, instantly setting my nerves on edge, and seemed to disappear.

"Well, that was rude!" Rika huffed indignantly.

"And kinda suspicious." I shot her a look, feeling an uncomfortable feeling in my chest. "I mean he took off at the sight of three girls?"

"Maybe he thought we were cops." Mikeala put in, going over to a small section on tools and parts from what I guessed were vehicle engines.

"Honey, if I _look_ like a cop, I gotta be doing something wrong." Ri deadpanned seriously, glancing over her short skirt and tank top she wore under a button up shirt she'd left unbuttoned. She made a face, before snickering at the grin Mikeala gave her. "But yeah, maybe that's it. Maybe they thought we were here to I dunno, case the joint."

"Wouldn't that be _their_ job?" I murmured under my breath. I left the girls to talk about that stranger's rude behavior and began wandering around the shop. Nothing really caught my eye. There were lots of games, but as a giant alien robot, somehow playing Streetfighter-style games on an old console just...didn't hold the same interest for me.

Musical instruments? Never really been my thing.

They had some books with interesting titles, but the summaries on the back pages didn't interest me. Besides, with my new abilities, I could download and read a book in seconds flat. Then again, since I felt that to be blasphemy to books in general, which were meant to be enjoyed in evenings, next to candle light, with half a glass of, err...energon...

But the only ones that interested me I'd already read.

Slowly, I worked my way around, until some part of the back of my mind told me I'd ended up in the exact same place as that strange man from before. Without really giving it much thought, I looked up, raising an eyebrow when I noticed I was staring into a case of jewellry. Gold and silver chains with cute little pendants, to be exact.

I once again thought of the main, thinking how he didn't resemble the jewellry type. Then again, what did I know?

There were little heart-shaped lockets, and little diamond -though, considering it was a pawn shop, probably not real diamonds for _that_ price- hearts, and diamond studs and stuff. They were cute, but I'd never been much of a jewellry girl.

What really caught my attention was the small lightning bolt-shaped pendant. It was simple metal, a dark brown, with sharp jagged edges along it's form. It was hardly pretty, and looked actually like nothing you'd expect a pawn shop to sell. It wasn't all that cheap, though, which had me wondering. It looked...oddly familiar, and with a gasp, I realized what I was staring at.

"Bells?"

I turned sharply to Rika, who was standing next to Mikeala, eyeing me curiously.

Without a word, I pointed to the necklace, and watched as they glanced at it cluelessly.

"So...you want it?" Rika looked hesitant, tilting her head a little bit. I knew she was probably thinking how cheap it was and looked, but obviously, she didn't recognize the significance.

Before I could tell her, however, the bell above the door jingled, and a burly man entered. I glanced at him and frowned a little in recognition. He had blue tinted hair, bright blue eyes, a fair complexion, and had muscles to make Arnold Schwartzenegger look like a puny wimp.

I could have made any number of comments as I patted Rika's shoulder and wandered over to him, but considering what I'd just seen, and the grim expression on his face, _now_ wasn't the time for jokes. "Boomer?"

"Decepticon signals in the area." He spoke quietly, his voice even deeper than most of the others, aside for Prime's himself. "They're not doin' much, but they're not leavin' either."

The blip made sense then, and I felt a current of dread hit me. "I think one of them was in here before we entered. Took off when he saw us, though."

His lips twitched a little, but he didn't say anything about it. "We'd best leave."

I nodded, sighing a little at the thought that our girlie outing was cut short. And we never had a chance to really pick anything up, either! Damn it! Turning to the girls, I called to them and gestured towards the door. The necklace was forgotten for a moment, as I thought about all the other times we'd ever run into Decepticons.

My heart thundered in my ears, and fear crept up inside me.

"I've already called the others."

I nodded, the necklace _finally_ crossing my mind again, though only because Rika handed me a small jewellry box with an uncertain smile. "Rika?"

She shrugged. "You said you wanted it. Happy early Birthday."

It hit me then that in all the chaos, I'd completely forgotten my birthday was coming up in this month. I blinked at her, amazed she remembered, before smiling. "Thanks, but we gotta go. Decepticons in the area."

Her eyes widened, and without a word, she made her way out to the blue Mazda that pulled up, opening the passenger door and speaking quietly to Jesse a moment.

"Hey." I turned to find Mikeala holding her own bag out. "Before we get caught up in yet another Decepticon attack-" She rolled her eyes. "Happy early Birthday."

Funny how she seemed nervous, but not outwardly afraid. At least, not at the moment. Then again, neither did Rika.

I checked inside to see the jeans I'd been eyeing earlier, and smiled again, nodding at her. "Thanks." With only one last glance at the area where the necklace had been, I hurried after them. After all, if I was right, drawing attention to it now would only be a bad thing. And considering my track record with getting captured, taking it with us didn't seem like a good idea, either.

We hurried out to the car, a strange calm over the group. It wasn't that we weren't afraid, far from it actually. I think we just knew panicking wasn't going to help.

Mikeala slid into the back first, followed by myself. Then Rika slid into the passenger seat, and without caring that people stopped and gawked, Boomer dissolved his holographic form. He immediately pulled into traffic, barely keeping within the speed limits as he swerved around cars.

"We're bein' followed. Just intercepted a message from Prime." Instead of taking a left, heading towards the docks, Boomer took a right at the next set of lights, heading further into town. "They're on their way back, and we're to rendevous."

"Got it." I clenched my hand tightly, and felt the box in my grasp. Looking down at it, my hands understandably shook as I opened the lid. _Oh dear Lord..._ I had this nagging feeling that I didn't have to worry about the shard in the store. After all, why would Rika had me a jewellry box? She knew I wasn't really a jewellry girl. Sure enough, nestled inside was the lightning-shaped shard of metal.

_'You said you wanted it.'_

_So much for not taking it with us._ I thought with a hint of dread. I hadn't actually _said_ it, but I could see how my actions could be misconstrued. "Rika, did you or Mikeala or the store owner touch the actual piece?" I couldn't shake this feeling. I wasn't an expert, but I just _knew_ what this was.

It didn't make sense though. I'd been _so_ certain Sam had the only other shard. Just how many _were_ there?

"Um, no?" She looked worried as she leaned over the seat to look at me. "Why? What's wrong?"

"Well, I wasn't staring so much because I _wanted_ it-" I cringed at how that sounded, and hurried to explain. "_But_ because it was familiar."

"Wait, you recognized it?" She frowned, more confused than hurt, and by now I even had Jesse's and Mikeala's undivided attention, as Boomer hit another street.

"Slaggin' 'Cons don't know when to give up. I'm only detecting two Seekers, but we should keep our optics open." Boomer seemed more focused on the Seekers than by the item I held.

Part of me wondered if he even sensed it. Did it give off energy? Could Autobots and Decepticons pick up on it? They had to have, if there was a Decepticon in the store to begin with. I mean, I sincerely doubted whoever that 'Con was, was in looking for a cute little necklace to give to Starscream.

"Yeah, I recognize it." I glanced up, meeting their eyes each. Then I looked down at the necklace. As if only confirming my thought, we passed into a small stretch of sunlight, that caught the shard at just such an angle that all the little runic script all over it really seemed to pop out, until the sun disappeared once again behind a building.

"So? What is it?"

"It's...another shard of the Allspark." Glancing up one more time, I could see looks of disbelief and shock clouding everyone's features.

An emotion I was probably mimicking, myself.

* * *

**(Normal PO****V)**

_**"Slaggit! The Autoscum femmes got the damn shard! How'd they even know where to look?"**_

_**"Look, just shut the frag up, and lets keep on them. We need to get that shard back before Starscream blows a gasket, and Shockwave remodels us into toasters."**_

_**"Get it back? GET IT BACK? Are you glitched? Do you not **_**sense**_** the other Autobots approaching? Including that infernal Prime? Just who do you think you are, Supermech?"**_

_**"Better than being Whiny Woman." **_A third voice cut in, causing the two jets to spiral a moment, before catching themselves. _**"And if you planned on not letting anyone know you **_**lost**_** a shard, it's probably best **_**not**_** to mention it over **_**public**_** internals."**_

_**"Thrust... Do you want to be flown into the sun?"**_ There was a pop, and one jet disappeared from it's location, reappearing behind a slightly smaller jet and ramming into it's backside. _**"Stop bitching and help us retrieve that shard!"**_

_**"Uh-uh."**_ There was a burst of static as Skywarp dodged sharply to the left, to avoid being rammed by a fourth jet. _**"This isn't our fight. You two were told to guard the shard, and you failed."**_

_**"And just how do you think Screamer's gonna feel when he finds out you didn't help us, and we couldn't get it back?"**_

Venting sharply, Thundercracker snarled a little. _**"Alright, that's enough! Stop fighting and get to work! We have to retrieve that shard, no matter what! If we fail, if **_**any**_** of us fail, we **_**all**_** know what waits us back at the base."** _

_**"I still think I should have been an Autobot."**_

Three of the three of the four jets spiralled momentarily in shock, almost nose diving to the ground, before they caught themselves. Ramjet growled and nudged Thrust's back end none too gently. _**"Don't ever say that again! Not even as a joke! We've already lost enough warriors to those bots!"**_

_**"Yeah, because they wanna stop the war! Does anyone even remember **_**why**_** we're fighting, anymore? Whatever our reason was, it lost all honor long ago, and then it died with Megatron. Starscream just wants power. I don't. I want peace. I want to find a femme and have little Seekers."**_

Thundercracker snarled and transformed quickly, spinning a blaster on the smallest of the jets. _**"You speak mutiny!" **_He all but roared, the blaster humming angrily.

Skywarp was right behind him, but didn't raise a weapon. He looked more uncertain, his glance going from his trine mate to the two other jets, just sitting before them in jet mode.

_**"I speak of peace. If you're gonna offline me, go ahead. I get that he's your trine leader. He's not mine though. I'm fragging tired of getting my aft handed to me by the good guys. And let me remind you, that was **_**before**_** they got all their backup. Now their army's twice the size it was, and ours is shrinking. If it keeps up this way... You do the math."**_

_**"We're loyal Decepticons."**_ Skywarp, unfortunately, didn't sound as determined as he tried to, and only succeeded in getting a dirty look from his trine mate.

_**"We're loyal Cybertronians. Our race is dying out. I have no wish to see the end of our days."**_

Thundercracker's arm shook as he aimed at the bot. He saw the Seekers as brothers in arms. Comrades he could trust. And here was one, talking of mutiny, yet he couldn't pull the trigger. He hated that something inside him was nagging him that maybe...maybe Thrust was right.

Ramjet on the other hand snarled. _**"I'm not gonna betray the Decepticons, and if you do, you'd better pray we don't meet up again. I'll let you leave this time, but next time we meet, we'll be enemies, and I **_**will**_** offline you."**_

Thundercracker vented and lowered his blaster. Despite what he was saying, Thrust had already been a loyal warrior. He, too, was tired of the war, but he sure as pit wasn't going to join the Autobots! _**"You have two Earth hours to make up your mind. Come back to the base if you've decided to stay."**_ Then his optics narrowed. _**"Or I will personally tell Starscream of your betrayal, and you know what **_**that**_** will mean."**_

Ramjet cursed, knowing it would mean punishment, if not down right offlining, of the remaining Seeker trine. _**"Come on, Thrust. We've already lost Dirge to those slagging bots. Don't destroy what's left of us!"**_ With that being said, he flew off after the others, intending to do whatever they had to, to get that shard back.

Thrust sat hovering in the air. He was tired. He liked to rely on psyching out his opponents, but the Autobots had long since grown used to his stunts. He no longer had the element of surprise with them, and he truly was done with the constant monotony of attacking or defending.

He knew he couldn't return to the base. Since he'd opened his mouth, none of the bots would trust him now, and if Starscream found out about it, there was no doubt in his processor he'd be offlined. Yet, he couldn't _not_ return. If he didn't, Ramjet would be targeted, and _he_ was Thrust's trine mate.

But he also couldn't bring himself to attack femmes. That had _always_ been a line that was near impossible for him to cross.

_But they're not all femmes..._His processor worked as he sluggishly started off after the others. _There's a mech with them, too, and an organic mech. Not to mention, the other Autobots would be there._

Deep down he knew their mission was a suicide mission, but he _was_ a Decepticon.

Venting deeply, he surged forward with a burst of speed, and began trailing after the others. _Primus, forgive me._

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Considering everything that was going on, it was to be expected my birthday was forgotten again, as quickly as it had been brought up. Then again, I was never much of a birthday person. To me, it was just a day like any other. _

_After all, if I wanted cake, I didn't need a reason to eat it. Not that I could anymore... If I wanted a party, I could have one or go to one at any time._

_I thought about it, once or twice, but other than a passing mention, it was once again forgotten, and that was no big deal to me._

_The shard, on the other hand, was._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Note** : I don't know the Seeker trines other than the basics about Starscream's, so Thrust and Ramjet are probably way OOC. I did not do too much research on them, again, because if I tried watching a season of the anime, I'd have lost all muse for this story. That's just how my brain functions.

**Written** : Dec 14, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	75. The New Mission

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Sorry about the late update, guys. I've sort of gotten addicted to a new online game, and kind of...been distracted. Thank you all so much for your support. I do understand that the name throws people. I never realized how much. I guess it's a good thing I'm working on a new fandom now, with a new OC. LOL But anyways, thank you all for your support. It means a lot to me. :)

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I thought my heart was going to pound out of my chest. We met up with the others just ouside of town, and the mechs transformed all around us, forming a tight, protective circle. Boomer remained in his vehicular mode, with the four of us trapped inside, and I waited, holding my breath._

_It was when my oxygen tanks -I have to remember I don't really have 'lungs' anymore- began to burn ominously, that I let out a huge breath. _

_And nothing happened._

_I thought for sure I was going to lose my mind, waiting for the attack, when the Autobots began to move. I distinctly remember Rika saying 'Oh my God, we're all gonna die!' right before Ironhide crouched down and nodded. Boomer let us know the Decepticons made a last minute retreat, and I think we all let out a collective sigh of relief._

_For once, I didn't end up hurt or in Decepticon hands!_

_YAY!_

_But now for the real issue... Well, one of them, anyways..._

_-Bella_

* * *

Optimus' optics were bright but grim, and we were surrounded by humans and bots looking at us with expressions varying from shock and disbelief to confusion and worry. It was big bot I was watching though, as he held the small shard in his hand. It almost disappeared in his grip, just lying on his palm, and he stared at it with his lip plates pulled tight. "This is most worrying. We haven't been looking for shards. I naturally assumed the one I pulled from Megatron's chest was the last surviving shard."

Shaking my head, I frowned. "I watched that movie like half a dozen times. I know that scene by heart, and there was _no_ sign of there being even a second shard, let alone a third. It didn't fragment and shoot across the sky. It dissolved into Megatron's spark."

"But if Sam had a second shard..." Mikeala was frowning with worry. "Whose to say there aren't more? Maybe we should start looking."

"Yes, we will recalibrate our sensors at once in search of more shards." Optimus hummed to himself a moment, a troubled expression crossing his features. "If this was what the Decepticons were after, there's no doubt they will be on the search for more. I suggest we return to the base immediately and begin our own search." He finally glanced up at me, and inclined his head. "You have my thanks, Bella."

I blinked. "For what?"

"For giving this to me right away."

I shook my head again. "With the Decepticons already after me, I really don't need _another_ reason to have them on my ass." I grimaced a little. "So what now? We're shard hunters?" The idea was weird for sure, but with Megatron out of the picture, I suppose we had to do _something_, right?

"At least it's something to do." Sunstreaker rolled his optics and vented. "It gets boring just sitting on our afts and running fruitless patrols all the time."

Turning to him, I felt my eyes narrow. "So it's boring when you run a patrol on the base and _don't_ find a Decepticon trying to abduct your cute little adoptive sparkling, or your mate for that matter?" I could agree that it was so quiet lately, it was a little boring, but I'd _never_ call uneventful patrols 'boring'. I'd call them lucky, or a relief. Then again, that's just me...

He stiffened, optics flashing, before sneering at me a little. "I never said that, femme." He growled, before stalking closer until he was almost right up in my face. He stared at me emotionlessly before his optics softened. However, that didn't mean he wasn't upset. "If those slagging 'Cons ever lay a hand on you again, I won't stop until I've extinguished their sparks myself."

"Same here."

I glanced over at Sideswipe, raising an eyebrow. "I know about you, I was there, remember?" The memory of semi-insane Sideswipe was still one that made me a tiny bit uneasy. I'd never known the twin could have such a dark spot. Not that I loved him any less, or anything, but _that_ particular memory wasn't one of my favorites.

"What are you talking about?" Sunstreaker frowned in confusion.

I glanced at Sides again, watching as he rubbed at the back of his head with a curse, before turning to Sunstreaker, who's eyes shot to his twin and narrowed. It didn't take a genius to know they were communicating internally, but I was a little more struck by... "Really?" I looked at Sideswipe, shocked. "You didn't tell him?"

"Things were hectic. I told him the basics."

Sunstreaker growled then. "But not the details. You actually lost control?" He blinked, before venting again. Surprisingly, he relaxed and shrugged. "Oh well, I probably would have done worse. At least you got her back." With that, he looped an arm casually around my waist, and pulled me against him.

I felt my cooling fans on when a few of the bots chuckled a little, including Optimus.

"Is there not a saying about young love?" Optimus raised an optic ridge, chuckling again when I let my head fall against Sunstreaker's chest with a dull clang.

Honestly, I was a little surprised he didn't complain about his paint, but instead, he pulled me closer, and I could feel his fingers working along the bottom edge of my back armor, running along it. My cooling fans switched up a notch, but thankfully, most of the bots had the good graces to turn away and transform. I remained in Sunstreaker's grasp a moment, feeling it as Sideswipe wrapped his arms around me from behind, embracing me as well. It was a few moments later when they pulled back, glowering at any human or bot who dared snicker at us.

Ducking my head a little, I noticed the vast majority of our group was transformed, and followed their example, turning into my Porsche mode. I was a little surprised when Mikeala climbed into me, and Rika eyed me a moment, before shrugging and waving, turning to join Jesse. Well, actually, I wasn't surprised about that latter part. I was more surprised about Mikeala, but accepted her readily.

"Is this okay?" She asked quietly, belting herself in.

I nodded without thinking about it, giggling in embarrassment when my entire frame shook and Mikeala bounced in her spot on the seat, laughing as she placed her hands over her head to protect herself. "Oops."

She waved it off, and I slowly pulled in behind Sunstreaker, with Sideswipe slipping in behind me as we began our processional back into town. I couldn't help but get the Scorponok theme in my head, remembering Youtube videos I'd looked up with the bots on them. All the gorgeous vehicle processions to the music.

If that music had even existed here, I probably would have played it.

"Listen... I was wondering... You remember how you said Sam and I would...be together in two years time?"

_I also said the movie would happen then, and look how that's turned out._ Still, I kept quiet but for an affirmative hum. The last thing she needed to hear was my uncertainties about what was coming, considering how much I'd changed. Speaking of, I still had yet to speak to Optimus about doing _something_ for the civilians on the base.

"Well...I don't think it's going to work." She sighed, fiddling with the steering wheel, before looking out the window. "I mean he's a great guy. He's not...usually what I'd pick for myself. It's like...well, I guess fate threw us together, and...it's been the best relationship I've ever had." She spoke hesitantly, refusing to tear her eyes from the window. Still she picked at the steering wheel. "It was a short relationship, but in that time, he's been so much better to me than any of my ex's."

Her eyes teared up and I sighed a little. "You really like him, and I _know_ he really likes you, too."

"But because of him, I'm locked on a base. I can't go out and party. I can't go talk to, or hang out with my friends. I can't even see my _father_, and the government is pulling strings to get him out of prison!" Tears spilled out over her cheeks, and she rubbed at her eyes in clear frustration. "I feel trapped. I mean, I know everyone's just trying to help, but nothing changes the fact it's a _base_. A _military_ base! We sleep in _barracks_! We eat _public_ meals in a _cafeteria_! It's just... I can't take this!"

"It's not Sam's fault, you know." I murmured softly, sadly. "I know it feels like it. It's because of him you were introduced to the Autobots and Decepticons, but..." I trailed off then, realizing just in the nick of time, that I'd been about to blame her.

"Please..." It was like she read my mind. "Just speak plainly. I know it's not his fault, I just... I don't know." She sighed forcefully and deeply. "Maybe I just need to hear it."

I hesitated a second, before sighing myself, activating my turn signal and following behind Sunny. "Well, it's free will, Mikeala." I felt a little bad. "I'm not blaming you, but what I mean is... You chose to go over to him when you saw him running, terrified. He told you to leave and you went over to him. He gave you a choice, about getting in the car, and you chose to get in. After the movie, you could have chosen to leave, to separate yourself, but you stayed. Didn't the fact that the Decepticons _might_ target you cross your mind?"

She closed her eyes, more tears falling, and I felt my chest tighten. When she opened them, however, there was a lack of hurt in her eyes. "You're right. I chose this. I just...it's all so overwhelming."

"You're not the only one feeling it." I told her gently. "Sarah loves Will, and she's feeling the pressure, too. Ron and Judy, they're feeling it as well. I think pretty much all the civilians are feeling the pressure. I wanna talk to Optimus about it, but I don't know what to suggest."

"How about not making us prisoners?" Mikeala sounded nearly desperate. "I'm not allowed to leave the island without at least one bot at my side, but with the number of bots, there isn't enough for everyone to have a bodyguard at all times. Bee's been watching over me, but he's Sam's guardian."

"Hmm... I'll definitely suggest it." I took a deep breath. "Mikeala, I'm sorry if I sounded like I was blaming you at all. I'm not. I was just trying to point out that it's not Sam's fault. I mean, there were tons of people involved in the battle of Mission City, and not all of them are here." I'd heard about a few signing non-disclosure agreements, before chosing to live their lives Autobot-free.

Now she finally smiled, patting the steering wheel lightly. "I know. You're right, too. It's not his fault. I feel really bad about snapping at him." Frowning, she glanced out the window. "But he won't let me apologize. He just keeps saying I'm right."

"He's a moron." I snorted a little, causing her to giggle slightly. "He's always self-sacrificing. He probably blames himself for all your problems."

"You're right. What should we do?"

_We? _I would have rolled my eyes, but in all honesty, I wanted to help. I _really_ wanted to help. I felt a little responsible, and if I could help in any way... "Well... It's a big island, maybe we can make a camp or something... No, that wouldn't work."

"Why not?"

"For one, _really_ freezing cold nights. Another, non-stop insects in the tents. Then there's the fact that if people like their solitude and independance, it's not like they can _live_ in the tents, long term. No hot water, no stove to cook on, no refrigerator to keep food cold..."

"Okay yeah, it would leave a _lot_ to the imagination."

"But..." An idea began to niggle in the back of my mind. It wouldn't be easy, and I doubted the powers that be -the human ones, that is- would agree so easily, but if we made them aware of what was at risk...

"But...?" Mikeala frowned a little. "Bella?"

We hit another street, one that was near the docks. "Well, it won't be easy, but _maybe_ we can convince Secretary Keller to help fund and send assistance to build a small villa. Nothing big, but maybe like...half a dozen houses for you guys. Complete with electricity, running water, and full plumbing. just some place on your own, so you're not _actually_ living on a base. In a sense, a place of comfort for the civilians we're trying to protect."

For a moment, she seemed to consider it. "Do you think he'll help?"

"I think...he'll be hesitant at best." I didn't know him well enough to be sure, but if I thought about it logically, building a small village on an island used primarily for a massive, top secret base, seemed a little...well, just not exactly right. Still, if we could bring up to him how it would help a group of humans we were trying to protect... But the budget issue would be a big one, unless we could get a hand as far as that went.

"But...?" Once again, it was like she read my mind, or maybe had the same hope as me.

"Well, he's a nice guy. At least from what I got. Maybe he'll let us. We just need to figure out all the details, and ways around the whole, well, budget limit, and the construction personelle we'd need, who can't know about the Autobots, and the time it'd take to build it, and possible Decepticon attacks..." The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to cringe. More and more issues presented themselves, and I began to second guess it, so I shut up and forced myself to stop thinking about it, before I canned the idea all together.

"But we can work it out." A new light seemed to come to her eyes. "There's always a way...right?"

"Right." I nodded to myself, laughing quietly when Mikeala bounced at the effect, laughing herself. _There's a way around it. There's always a way around it._ I let the idea encourage me as much as I'd hoped it would encourage her. As the dock pulled up, I relaxed and boarded with the others, pulling into the lower cargo space with half the bots, while the rest went up to the upper deck to enjoy the sun. "I'll bring it up with Optimus." Which reminded me... _I never _did_ welcome Wheeljack._

The idea still floored me.

He was a _possible _bot appearance in the third movie, but it had never really been confirmed. Not to mention, his arrival was _supposed_ to be four years down the line. Was that new sensor network of theirs _that_ efficient? I'd been told it'd help direct the Autobots to Earth, but he arrived so _soon_! And there was still work to be done to help secure the network, and finish it's upgrades!

I was admittedly thrown. I'd changed everything, and was really starting to wonder what was going to happen next. Not having the answers never really bothered me... Not that I'd given it much thought before, but... Shard hunters? Really? That's what we were going to do?

I needed... I had a lot of adjusting to do...again.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Loops._

_I kept getting thrown for them. Just as I started to settle down, once again I was knocked off balance. I guess I never really gave much thought to what we were going to do, but now that I had, the whole 'shard hunter' thing was more than unexpected. I guess I expected more of a direct, massive battle with the Decepticons. Not...travelling around, hunting for any more possible shards._

_It seemed tedious, but I knew just how important it was. Especially when Optimus called a meeting with the soldiers and Autobots -and former 'Cons- to inform us all we were now going to be splitting up even more. Maggie, Glenn and Simmons were immediately set to work, recalibrating the sensors along with Ratchet's and Bumblebee's help. Even Soundwave was requested to help, much to the displeasure of the bots that still didn't quite trust him._

_Honestly, I wasn't surprised when Wheeljack wasn't allowed to help. He'd _just_ arrived on Earth, and was _still_ bouncing from 'interesting' topic to 'interesting' topic. I thought Rika was bad, especially on a sugar and caffeine rush, but he made her look like a mute. He scared off every human in the first ten minutes, babbling on about minor experimentation to learn more about the humans, as well as showing a far too much interest in my own transformation, and wondering if the process could be repeated._

_Yeah, I'm one of the people hiding from him._

_I had enough of a time adapting to being a Cybertronian. I'm guessing the Primes had a _huge_ hand in what happened to me, and I didn't really feel like being the lab rat that helped Wheeljack satisfy his curiosity. Especially not with his successful/blow-up-in-your-face ratio, when it came to his experiments. With my luck, he'd blow up something important._

_Or maybe somehow end up oddly successful with transforming me back into a human..._

_Oh Primus... There's a thought I didn't need._

_God, did the issues never end?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Dec 15, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	76. The New Threat

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Optimus was hesitant, but saw with ease just how serious this was. He agreed to it surprisingly easily. I guess that was the easy part. Now _he_ had to convince _Keller_ that we needed a small village built across the island. I even had an area picked out. There were only a few trees. Enough space to land supplies nearby and build, with enough trees to at least partially conceal the villa and offer shade and beauty to it when it was done. It was even near a little waterfall._

_Still, because nothing had been officially confirmed just yet, we decided to keep it within the little group that knew about it. That was...Mikeala, Optimus, myself, and the twins. After all, it wouldn't take much for them to find out, and considering they were my unofficial mates, I didn't like keeping anything from them._

_They both reacted with surprising encouragement. Sunny's reason, of course, was that it would get the humans out from under their foot pads. Sides' reason was just that it was a good idea._

_Anyways, that was probably the easier part of the two things currently top most on my mind. Now that, that was taken care of, it was time for the other, and Primus, I'm not sure I'm ready for that..._

_Still...nothing ventured, nothing gained._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(A Week Later)**

I growled softly as I laid back on the berth. It had been some time since the last time I did this, and last time it was an emergency. I guess, on the upside, I'd managed to convince the twins that Sunfire needed a little daddys time. They had her somewhere out on the base, giving me a chance to do what I needed to, without interruptions or an audience.

It helped that the other bots were either patrolling the base, patrolling Tranquility and nearby area, or out investigating reports of Decepticons in nearby cities. That, and Wheeljack had _finally_ been allowed to help out with the sensors, once he calmed down. It didn't take him long. Apparently he decided to forego recharge for several days straight in order to research everything he could. Then he crashed (Literally. He fell through a wall.), recharged for a day straight, and was a lot calmer when he woke up.

He still wanted to run some 'tests' on me. Like bloody hell!

Anyways, now he and the others were kept busy. I was alone in our quarters, feeling anxious as I struggled to relax. I hadn't seen or heard from the First Prime since, well...a while. I think the last time was when I called to him, while in Decepticon care. Either way, I was hoping and praying he'd hear me and respond.

I breathed deeply, feeling my heart flutter nervously. _Please work..._

"Um...First Prime?" I spoke softly, hoping he'd hear me regardless. "I...I have a question..." I closed my eyes, and tried to relax. All I could see was the darkness, but I could still hear the faint hum of the electronic door, hear the slightly louder hum of the flourescent light. I could even faintly hear the voices of the passing soldiers. "Please... Talk to me..."

How long was I laying there, waiting for an answer? I had no idea, but soon my body began to tense. I was starting to doze. I started to get resless. It wasn't time for recharge, and I didn't want to, so I forced myself to breathe deeply and open my eyes. The colors of the painted sunset met me, and I tried not to be disappointed by the lack of response.

I guess I hoped he'd be there when I opened my eyes, but I was left with worries. My main one? What would happen to me once this was all over. We discussed the fact I was supposed to change things here, but what about after? Would I stay here? Would I be forced to go home?

Somehow, the latter idea seemed kind of cruel.

My secondary concern was our 'shard hunting' business. If the shards existed in the second movie, how was it no one found them? Why were they looking for them now? Or _had_ they found them? After all, the Decepticons had been rumored to be all over the world, looking for something. The second movie said it was the Sun Harvester, but... What if it wasn't? What if it was the shards they were after?

The new thought sent my mind reeling. I was on my feet before I could think about it, and glancing around once more, I sighed, disappointed anew, before leaving the room. Wandering down the halls, I took note at how much easier the soldiers moved around the bots. Gone were the snickers and smart comments. Gone were the insults and glare. In it's place was a growing sense of ease, companionship, and even friendship.

It was a small light in the overwhelming gloom of the issues plaguing my mind. I wandered to Optimus' office, only to find him not there. With a sigh, I began walking down another hall, not even sure if he was on base right now, let alone where he'd be, if he was.

"Ya look a lil lost, lil lady!"

The cheerful voice caught my attention, and I smiled as I glanced at Jazz. "Hey. You know, you can't call me 'little' anymore." I grinned a little, when it really hit me I was looking _down_ on him. I was taller, though not by much.

He waved off my words with his usual smirk. "Lookin' fer somethin'?"

"Optimus, actually."

His smirk only grew, and I realized I'd probably just given him fuel for something I was about to regret, and sure enough... "Ya sure are spendin' a lotta time wit' da big bot. Yer twins might get a lil jealous."

Rolling my eyes, I shook my head. "Please, as if they have anything to worry about." I mimicked his earlier gesture, waving it off. "I was just thinking about something..." I trailed off, frowning. "A lot of somethings."

His smirk faded then and he tilted his head. His visor was down, but as he stared at me, I could swear it gave off it's own light. "Well, da boss' off da island. He's out scoutin' about where da 'Cons were last seen."

"Damn!" Groaning, I shook my head.

"I can list'n if ya want."

I thought about it for a second, before shrugging. He _did_ have a similar easy going nature about him to the big bot. "Can we go outside?" He nodded, and I followed him outside, past the others. It didn't escape my notice when specific bots turned my way. Barricade just raised an optic ridge, before returning to speaking to Soundwave, off to the quieter edge of the base.

I was honestly glad Soundwave seemed sincere in his wishes to join us and help. Ravage curled around his foot pads, dozing in the warm sun, and the smaller casseticons were playing around in the field, as opposed to the other bots, all milling around, trying to be useful.

They actually looked almost like children, despite otherwise, and I made a small mental note to ask Soundwave, sometime, if they were drones, or living beings of their own.

And, of course, the twins shot me looks, neither of which seeming happy I was with Jazz, moving past them. They didn't say anything though, so I waved at them and continued on.

I guess it wasn't only Optimus who liked to talk out away from the base.

I'm not complaining.

"So, what'cha wanna talk 'bout?"

_More than you can imagine. _"First of all, never refer to a woman as 'lil bitch'. I don't care if you're over ten feet tall and made of metal, you _will_ get hurt." I put in dryly. I don't even know where the thought came from, but it was suddenly just there, slipping past my lips. When he raised his visor, and then raised an optic ridge at me, I couldn't help but giggle. "And no, that wasn't it, but I just had to warn you."

He nodded then, smirking a little. "Yeah, I searched the net." He winced then. "I'm glad 'Keala didn't take it personally."

I laughed out right then. "If she did, you'd wake up with your head welded to your aft." Sighing then, I shook my head. "No, I wanted to talk to, well, someone about... In the second movie, in the beginning, it was mentioned the Decepticons were spotted all over the world, looking for something. We always thought it was the Sun Harvester, because in the second movie, that's the journey Sam went on, after Optimus-" I stopped, shuddering.

There was no sign of a smirk on Jazz's face, as he nodded. In fact, he looked more sympathetic and understanding. "I see."

"No. I mean..." I shook my head, forcing myself to push past that part. "We _thought_ it was the Harvester, but I was just thinking about the fact that there's more shards out there. What if they were looking for those, instead?"

"They could'a been lookin' fer da shards ta build an army." He mused.

I nodded. "And that makes a lot of sense."

"'Dey almost got da sensors recalibrated fer da shards."

"We should find them as soon as possible." I was frowning. "But I don't feel right that we're not looking for the Decepticons. I mean, who knows what they're planning, while we're looking for the shards." I sighed heavily, glancing back at the base. "And the people we have here, that we shouldn't... Until the Decepticons are taken care of, they won't be safe." That was so different from the movie. What had changed to put _them_ in danger?

"Dey'll be safe as long as dey're here." He glanced over as well.

"But not happy. I can see it. Being here, it wasn't so bad at first, but now they're feeling more like prisoners." I thought about Mikeala. "And it's going to take time for them to build the villa." Jazz, as Prime's more immediate second in command, had been made privy to the information.

He nodded again. "We got a lot on our plates at da moment."

"But it doesn't feel right. I can't shake this feeling there's something we're missing. Something big. It might or might not be related to the third movie, I really don't know." I sighed heavily, before spotting something. Glancing up sharply, I noted how the twins began walking in our direction, but what really got me was how their optics kept darting down to the ground, and back up. "Okay, what happened?"

Sunstreaker looked concerned and annoyed, while Sideswipe only looked amused. "Someone got tired of 'daddys time'." He raised an optic ridge.

Being reminded of Sunfire, I searched both mechs, making to step forward, when a glare and a sharp jerk of Sunstreaker's hand caused me to pause.

_**"Don't move."**_

Hearing a crashing through the woods, I glanced down at my knees, my optics picking their way past the leaves of the trees, to a small silver form as it darted around trees, almost unsteadily. "Sunfire?" I felt my eyes narrow as I carefully knelt, shooting both twins a dirty look. "You let her go on her own, in an area where she's visibly concealed, and _didn't_ think to warn anyone?" I growled, feeling threatened for the sparkling. "Do you have _any_ idea how dangerous that was?"

She squeaked and grappled with my foot pad, and I picked her up with ease, holding her closely, even as Sideswipe lowered his head, his amusement fading.

"What if she'd been hurt?"

"She wasn't." Sunstreaker's optics narrowed.

"But she _could_ have been!" I was vaguely aware my voice was rising. "What if there was an attack on the base, and you'd let Sunfire wander off on her own? What if a bot was performing drills, and moving quickly, and you didn't warn them she was in the forest they were stomping through?" I held her tightly to my chest.

To be fair, I didn't really know if I was shouting at them because I was angry, or because I was frustrated with everything going on, and annoyed at them. Right now, they were just the perfect targets to take out my anger on.

_**"If the Decepti-creeps dared to attack this base, I'd offline them before they could harm one cable on Sunfire."**_ Sunstreaker hissed over a private internal link, his optics narrowing.

I shivered at the dark threat in his voice, my own anger forgotten when I recalled just how dangerous these two bots could be. It was easy to forget they were seasoned fighters when they were gentler and sweet around Sunfire and I, or friendly and fairly easy going around the other bots.

"Sunfire would never be harmed. We'd never allow it." Sideswipe added, verbally. "That's why we followed after her, and we were _both_ tracking her with our sensors, to keep a lock on her location at all times. Just in case."

I relaxed a little, recalling Sunstreaker's warning when I went to move. He'd known where Sunfire was, where my step would take me, and knew I could hurt her. "Just...be careful. She's... She's really the only real sparkling." Besides maybe Wheelie, but he was more a youngling than a sparkling. Like Bumblebee, and the minor twins.

Jazz seemed to take that as permission to head off. "I'll see to da boss bot 'bout what'cha told meh." He nodded, waving, before waggling a finger in Sunfire's face and walking off.

"'What'cha told meh'?" Sunstreaker mimicked. "What are we missing?"

I sighed and shook my head, before filling them in. I told them about my concerns about the shards that might or might not still be out there. I told them about the possibility they were what the 'Cons had been looking for in the second movie, since that had honestly never been really confirmed.

I didn't tell them about my insecurity about the possibility of being sent home once this was all over and done with. That was one thing... Without a confirmation, I didn't know if it was paranoia or a possibility. Honestly, it seemed like a thing too cruel for the Primes to pull, but I had no idea how their powers worked? What about the Bella from this world? Where was she? Did they cause some form of major imbalance in the universe, bringing me here?

There were just _so_ many new questions!

* * *

**(Normal POV, Tranquility)**

_**"The last approach didn't work! We **_**lost**_** a bot!"**_

_**"He chose not to come back!"**_

_**"He didn't join the Autobots, though."**_

_**"A neutral! Just as bad! He could still turn on us! This time we're doing things **_**my**_** way!"**_

_**"But Shockwave-"**_

_**"Will be satisfied when he sees the shard in our possessio-agh!"**_

A group of jets were flying well above the clouds, hidden from the world below. The one in the lead looked like any ordinary military F-22, except for the strange tattooed markings all over it's form. It was that jet that let out a loud, piercing shriek and suddenly seemed to soar out of formation, spinning as it began a dangerous, spiralling nosedive to the ground.

_**"Did you think I would not know of your plans, Starscream?"**_ The voice was cool, emotionless. _**"You have always harbored plans to take over Megatron's position in the Decepticons, as leader. It was only natural you'd harbor the same feelings towards me. You will return to base at once."**_

_**"But... I..."**_ He shrieked again, barely able to gain control before he crashed into the side of a building, and soared back up along the side of it, back into the clouds. The pain was nearly blinding.

_**"The rest of you will continue to monitor the most recently located shard. Chances are good the Autobots will detect it soon, if they have not already. Work on integrating yourself amongst the humans and bring me that shard."**_

Starscream hissed to himself, before using all the control he had to veer off from the others. He tore away from them, mentally cursing Shockwave to the deepest parts of the Pit, going as far as to call him the spawn of Unicron, but made his way quickly and efficiently back to the base.

There was no way he could possibly have known what was coming.

* * *

**(Decepticon Base)**

Shockwave stared at the scene before him, his optic flashing eerily. A strangely sickening sucking sound came from before him, and he watched the being as it split into two, organic tentacles climbing up the rock walls around him. The creature gave off a small light, and he smirked.

The color of his optic flashed an unusual violet, before turning crimson again, and he breathed deeply. Slowly, he reached out. A single tendril slithered out from under the armored plating of his left arm, and touched one of the tendrils that reached towards him, leaving behind a wet, slimy trail.

The smaller creature moved forward then, crawling into his hand, and feeling around.

The optic flashed violet again. _It's time to spread. I need to end his arrogant defiance before he causes too big an issue._ The creature slithered under his armor, and his body went rigid at the sensation, before he relaxed. Hearing the incoming engine of a jet, he turned away from the single glowing creature left behind, before stalking through numerous cave systems and out into the dark of night.

_Soon we will have the life source. We will be fed for as long as we need, and will never have to leave._

* * *

**Written** : Dec 25, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	77. Bella's First Real Mission

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I was struggling with the idea of what to do for a new big bad, so, sorry it took so long to bring it about. But, on the upside, I FINALLY have one, and I don't think it's been done before! And it was inspired by a crossover horror-ific dream I had recently, where I was a Decepticon ambassador to Earth, having to try and smooth over their really harsh past and create a possibly peaceful future for them with the humans and Autobots. XD LOL!

Oh, and Sunstreaker was like this golden orangey-yellow Corvette Stingray. *Drool*.

And on a side note, I'm not _actually_ going to do more than like...2 or 3 chapters of shard hunting, before moving on to the actual issue. -.-' This story is long enough. Heck! This is chapter freakin' 77! D:

And I've decided to update when I go to the farm, so it'll be later in the week for the updates.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Once Optimus got back, we were alerted to Decepticon activity in a city just a few towns over from the base. Considering I was still new to all this, he wanted me to go along as well. More or less because I was the most used to human society, and because I needed the experience._

_He also told me he'd spoken to Jazz, and all things considered, until the Decepticons made a big scale move, all we could do was hunt shards and fight them every step of the way. _

_It didn't settle well with me, but he raised a _really_ good point._

_...We had no idea where they were, anymore._

_They'd moved their base, and with meteors landing all over the planet, they could have been _anywhere._ Really, there were only two odd occurences that caught the Autobots' attention._

_1) An unusually large meteor crashed on Earth a few days ago. One the size that, if it had landed as most meteors did, should have brought about a new ice age, but didn't. Not only that, when it was investigated, only amateur videos told us anything about it._

_It was a bot. It was huge. And it had one crimson optic._

_Oh, crap!_

_2) Another meteor landed. This one was smaller, but it landed in a river somewhere up in Canada. It wasn't considered all that odd, except several tattooed jets were seen flying to the area and retrieving something, and when _that_ was investigated, again, there was nothing. Only a strange ooze that scientists had taken a sample of, and were currently trying to examine._

_But were the Autobots focusing on those? No, the humans were looking into it. They hunted down any and all videos captured of Shockwave's arrival -I _did_ say 'Oh, crap', right?- and removing them from the internet, before hunting down the people who _took_ the videos._

_To say I recognized two of the faces brought to the base would be an understatement._

_And I honestly couldn't say I was pleased._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Two Days Later, Bella's POV)**

"_Leo? Miles?"_ I stared at the mugshots of the only two faces I recognized. There were about half a dozen pictures in front of me, of the photographers who'd been in the general viscinity of the crash, and caught it on camera, but they went unnoticed as I stared at _those_ two pictures.

"Miles." Optimus tilted his head, and Bumblebee warbled a choked groan. "As in Miles Lancaster?"

"Yeah, Sam's best friend. But what I don't get is how he got involved with Leo? Did they know each other?" I glanced up at the large bot, being one of many bots in a 'priviledged' meeting. Generally, it was Epps, Lennox, and Simmons for the humans. Me, Optimus, Ironhide, Ratchet, Jazz and Bumblebee for the bots. And only those bots because they'd been the first response team, and knew the most about Earth.

Sunny and Sides weren't happy, but knew better than to whine to the big boss.

"No." Optimus shook his head. "Secretary Keller informs me they were simply at the same Internet Cafe when the crash occured, and only happened to run into each other coincidentally."

"Why do I have a hard time believing any of that is coincidence?" I grumbled, frowning. "Leo is Sam's room mate in college, in the second movie, and he's brought into the war just because he ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time. Miles...as far as I know, was never brought into it."

"They will have to be, now. It seems this _Leo_ refuses to be silenced. He was clearly tempted by the monetary amount offered, but chose his first amendment rights instead."

"He did end up part of the war in the second movie. That might be one of those things meant to happen. What about Miles?" I was already thinking about how cramped the base was getting. It was clearly close quarters for the soldiers, as they worked on expanding the base to give the Autobots proper work quarters and offices.

Until then, storage unites were overpacked to allow smaller buildings as spare quarters for some of the bots. Humans packed into tiny rooms to free up spare rooms for storage units. Most of the spare hangars were being used as conference rooms and offices.

And with the civilians, it was even more cramped. Mikeala had to have _some_ place to work on mechanics. The only thing seeming to keep her sane at the moment. Judy and Ron insisted on having _some_ space for gardens, and were constantly getting under foot. Most of the rest were more or less okay, but what if we needed to bring more people in.

"It's times like these I wish we had those memory erasing things from 'Men in Black'." Simmons muttered with a face. "Would keep all the pimply faced morons off of our base."

"But it would be so much more boring without you here." I cut in dryly, shooting him a look.

"Regardless, Simmons is right." Ironhide grunted. "Sam and Mikeala may be kids, but they learned hard and fast what was going on and how to protect themselves. These two are the biggest definition of the human term 'Nerd', and would only get in the way. If money won't keep 'em quiet..." He grinned, shifting and rolling his cannons pointedly.

"No, Ironhide." Prime sighed, put out. "We don't shoot humans, and we don't threaten them."

"Unless they _really_ annoy us." I put in mock sweetly, smiling down at Simmons, and causing the soldiers to snicker.

Optimus ignored me, other than a twitching of his lip plates. He gave Ironhide a warning look about the cannons, before turning back to the matter at hand. "What should we do about this?" He glanced at me.

I shook my head, hating that for once, I really didn't have an answer. "This wasn't in any of the movies. Miles wasn't seen after the first movie, and I just assumed he and Sam _might_ have kept in touch off screen, but they weren't the best of friends. Not to mention, I don't think he got into Sam's college, and clearly didn't know about the bots, since he wasn't included. At least, that's what I _think_." I pouted, feeling insecure without my twins backing me up.

Bumblebee cooed and smiled at me. I heard him blast the song, briefly, that I'd sung for him so long ago, and I smiled as he cut it off. Maybe he knew I was tense, but that little snippet caused my cooling fans to switch on, and seemed to help with it. Distraction was nice.

"It's alright, Bella. For now, I don't see we have a choice but to bring them here. Miles refuses to give in to the money, either, though for him, it seems to be more out of fright. If they won't agree, we have no choice but to hold them here as prisoners."

"Prisoners?" I felt my eyes widen.

"They threaten to expose us to your planet." Optimus Prime bowed his head. "Normally I would not act so harshly, but with the threat of Allspark shards everywhere on your planet, and the Decepticons chasing after them, we cannot afford the rumors that your species will react negatively."

My mind flashed back to the 'Autobots: Go home' symbol I'd seen on one of the third movie updates. Basically, if any humans had issues with them, it would interfere big time, and right now we couldn't afford it. Still... "Is 'prisoner' really necessary? They're just kids." Not too much younger than myself, but kids nonetheless.

"Perhaps, but they also don't seem to realize the seriousness of the situation at hand. They seem to believe it is all some sort of..." He hesitated a moment, as if trying to find the right word.

"Joke? Game? To them, it probably is." I remembered how excited Leo was whenever he got any footage about the giant alien robots. Too excited. Too happy, like the newest, hottest game had _just_ been released, and he'd been selected to play it before anyone else.

"So we bring them here. We restrict any incoming or outgoing calls or whatever, and make them realize just how serious it is. Force them to sit through one of Ironhide's training sessions." I shot him a dry look. "Or Ratchet's medical exams." I turned more serious as I glanced at the medibot, before turning back to Prime. "Introduce them to real live aliens, and make it sink in that we're at _war_. Don't lock them up just because they don't agree with what you want."

"Bella, I never intended them to be locked in the brig." Optimus' look was semi-amused. "I merely meant what you just said. Bringing them to the island and severely limiting their communications. They will also not be allowed on or near computers with internet access. Reviewing their files, I see Miles has a habit of getting into trouble, and Leo is a hacker just below Maggie's level."

"I'd watch them around any electronics, big guy." Simmons grunted, waving a file in his hand. "This 'Leo' kid isn't just a hacker, he's also good at reprogramming, and rewiring."

"Hm, if all goes well, I could use another human apprentice." Ratchet intoned curiously. "Mikeala has been excelling in her work, and I can always use extra hands."

"Just make sure those hands won't offline you while they work, first, Peppermint." Oh yeah, did I forget to mention Simmons had become all too familiar with Ratchet's new nicknames?

Ratchet growled quietly, but refrained from saying a word.

I thought about it, before frowning, troubled. "I...wouldn't bring them to Diego Garcia." I received a lot of looks, and sighed. "Well, think about it. It's a breach of security. They'll know the location, know beyond any shadow of a doubt about the Autobots, and if they're sneaky enough, might have access to computers, able to transmit signals, or hack into secured files."

"Didn't I say we should keep them away from electronics?" Simmons drolled.

I shot him a look. "And if they decide to work together. They're 'nerds', remember? That means they're smart, able to think on their feet, and resourceful."

"We cannot simply allow them to go." Optimus protested.

"No, of course not. But we can't bring them _here_, either." I didn't really want to get into the discord on the base, at the moment. "Look, why don't we keep them on another base? You can still keep them your 'prisoners', only this way there's no way to further their knowledge, or freak them out even more. Use the 'terrorist' exuse. Or say it was a scientific experiment gone wrong. Either convince them what they saw was fake, or introduce them to Autobots. Whatever. Just... We have enough issues as it is."

"Hmmm... Perhaps you are right." Optimus nodded, frowning. "Bringing them here now could cause more harm than good, so for now we will keep them on another base, and will not further their knowledge of our kind."

I nodded thankfully at him, listening to the murmurs of agreement from most bots. Ironhide disagreed, naturally, thinking they were too big a threat so far away from us, but even his protests were muted.

It was Optimus who cleared his throat, glancing down at decidedly less-than-pleased Lennox and Epps. "If that's cleared up, we should turn to the task of retrieving the latest shard. It won't be long before the Decepticons make a move for it."

"I'm surprised they haven't already." Ironhide grunted, folding his arms over his chest.

"They're resourceful." I nodded. "They could be biding their time, not wanting to draw unnecessary attention to themselves. Barricade told me a while back that Sideways was supposed to watch me, not attack. They didn't want to draw attention then."

"Why would it matter to them?"

I glanced over to 'Hide. "Maybe because it would alert billions of humans to their existence, hindering them about as much as Leo and Miles blabbing about us would hinder us? Maybe because they don't want to draw Autobot attention? Or maybe because they know all too well the humans have weapons that can stand up to a Cybertronian, in battle? It could be any number of reasons."

"But they also must realize we will sense the shards and go after them."

"Who knows? Optimus is right though, we'll have to move fast." I glanced to him, leaving the floor open to the boss bot, with only the passing notion I was taking part in strategy and war plans, as if I belonged here. It gave an eerie sense of comfort, like I was finally finding my ground. I didn't feel so much like an outsider, or useless for that matter. "Optimus?"

He nodded. "You are to leave immediately. I will have Sunstreaker and Sideswipe running patrols around the perimeter of the city, and Boomer and Jolt will go with you. Jetfire will keep contact with you from the skies, should you need emergency retrieval."

I nodded, glancing around. Ironhide was clearly disappointed he wasn't going, but then he was informed of another shard that he and the Arcee triplets would be retrieving, at the same time. Two shards. Geez, just how many _were_ there? Had the entire cube survived?

"But wait..." I glanced at Prime as a troubling thought hit me. "What about the shards? Where are we going to keep them? In the second movie, they were in human custody."

Now Optimus groaned a little. "And the humans wish at least one of them to be in their custody now, despite our arguments. They are arguing that because we want them to trust us, we should show trust in them, and allow them the caretaking of one of our shards. Despite the fact I've told them what apparently happened in your movie."

Will nodded now. "Yeah, I heard about that. They're arguing that because they know now, they can stop it. Especially since Soundwave and his ca-ca-uh..."

"Casseticons." I put in helpfully, causing his cheeks to pink. "Don't worry about it. I knew the term as a kid and forgot it when I grew up, until I got into reading fanfiction." I shrugged like it was no big deal. "But I see your point. Considering they're on our side, maybe it's okay to trust the humans. The Decepticons don't have anyone to inform them where the shards are being held. And no casseticons to sneak in past security. Only..." I raised a hand then, to make a point. "Let's keep at least one bot on guard duty, at all times."

"I am hesitant about that. If Shockwave has truly appeared, he, too can hack into your worldwide web and track the location of the shards." Ironhide growled quietly, once again showing his brighter side. "We shouldn't let them take control of any of the shards until he's been dealt with, at least. With Soundwave on our side-" He grimaced, still troubled by that thought. "And Shockwave offline, we should be more secure in leaving a single shard in the custody of the humans."

Once again Optimus nodded. "Agreed. It is too dangerous for the moment. Jazz and I will hold onto the shards for the time being. Now that this is all settled, let us return to the task of retrieving the shards." He straightened up more, towering over the bots present and once again bore his usual regal air. "Autobots. Transform and roll out!"

I couldn't help but smirk, ruining the serious atmosphere when Optimus raised an eyebrow at me. "The infamous movie line. Damn! That _never_ gets old!" Even as Will and Epps snickered, I raised a hand and saluted Prime. "Yes, sir! You got it, sir!" I turned and marched out, leaving Ironhide and Ratchet murmuring about disrespectful youth, Bumblebee snickering, and Prime and Jazz laughing lightly.

_Yay! A real mission!_

* * *

**(Fallon City)**

I grimaced a little, sitting inside Jolt. Damn, he really _was_ a smaller car, wasn't he? Well, considering I was the one to go into the museum as a tourist, I couldn't very well be both car _and_ human, and since I hadn't mastered a holoform yet, this was the easiest way.

I left Sunfire in Rika's care on the base, my heart longing for the twins currently running patrols. It could have just been me, but I could swear I could feel their anxiety leaking over their internal communications. I think we were back on public channel again. Private felt more secure, smaller, personal. I felt it in my head, hearing the buzz of the different bots on their missions.

I'd tuned them out, though, as none of them were talking _to_ me, or about the mission. That didn't mean my head wasn't spinning, and my heart pounding.

"You should calm yourself. You are clearly nervous, which will only draw unwanted attention." Jolt spoke with a medical professionalism, but eyed me warily.

I returned the wariness, knowing very little about this bot personally, other than the fact he was a friend to the twins, and was a loyal medical assistant who fought with electronic whips. I also knew he was a part of the reason Optimus lived in the third movie, thanks to his powers. "You try being in my position, and not being at least a little nervous." I shot back, breathing deeply.

I was scared. I was excited. I was just plain anxious, and the two heavily armed security guards at the gates didn't reassure me in the least.

"Decepticons I can handle. Clueless humans in passing I can handle. Armed guards likely to watch my every move like hawks... How do I handle that?" I wasn't used to subterfuge, and was feeling very much like a newbie version of James Bond.

"Boomer will cause a distraction, and I've already hacked into their security systems unnoticed. Right as we're about to act, I'll bring down the camera's, and let you know it's safe. But you will have to inform us when you find the shard, in order to start it all."

"Why couldn't someone run reconnaissance before we got here?" I groaned, shaking my head.

"No time." Jolt was frowning. His holographic eyes flashed, and a map overlaid the front windshield. It was the blueprints for the museum, and I grimaced.

"This was never a strong point for me. Okay, so where's that door on here?" I pointed out the window, to the front door of the museum. Jolt pointed to a spot, and we worked out which direction was which, before a spot began to blink on the map.

"That is the location of the shard, and unfortunately, I can't be more specific. You'll need to find it."

"So...I use my cell phone to let you know?" I held up the golden yellow cell phone I still held. The phone Sunstreaker no longer wanted back, as it was currently the only way for me to communicate. My mind was _still_ getting used to voices in my head, and Ratchet _still_ deemed it too early to learn to speak through the channels, so it's all I had.

He nodded. "Let us know as soon as you can."

Sighing heavily, I took a deep breath. "Got it." Steeling my nerves, I closed my eyes, trying to calm myself for a moment, before I opened the door.

"And Bella?"

Glancing at Jolt, I watched as a worried look flashed across his features.

"The Decepticons are still in the area. They're not attacking..._yet,_ but I'm certain they will once they detect the shard moving. Move fast and efficiently towards an exit once you have it."

I shuddered a little, watching as a woman, clearly heavily pregnant, walked into the museum. Closing my eyes again, I said a small prayer to both Cybertronian _and_ human deities, praying that no one would get hurt, before I opened them again.

"I can do this." I think I was saying it more for my benefit than Jolt's. "I can do this."

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

_**"Slaggit! The pit-spawned Auto-scum are back again! They're going to get the shard!"**_

_**"Starscream, what should we do?"**_

There was no answer, and the small convoy of jets soared overhead, waiting in confusion. It wasn't like Starscream not to answer them, but his trine mates could sense he was still online, if very stressed and in agony. Clearly Shockwave hadn't been going easy on him, but why wasn't he replying?

_**"Starscream? We need your orders."**_

_**"Yeah, the femme's on the move already! If she gets the shard, we're slagged!"**_

_**"We can't just **_**let**_** them have it!"**_

Still no response, and the jets passed by each other, working the area over the map in a grid fashion. They hesitated, at the lack of response. Their instincts screamed to get the shard, but their logical processors screamed for them to wait.

After all, they _were_ supposed to work undercover, keeping their true natures hidden from the humans.

_**"Starscream?"**_

Finally, they got an answer, but it wasn't from who they were looking for. Nor did it settle their nerves. Especially when the normally calm, logical bot responded with a harsh, angry tone.

_**"Starscream is busy! You will wait until the femme retrieves the shard, follow them out of the town, and take it back!"**_

_**"Sir... We're... We're detecting multiple Autobot lifesigns. We're outnumbered, and don't stand a chance. If we're to take the shard, we need to take it now!"**_

There was a low snarl, and Thundercracker yelped as he was bombarded with a burning agony in his processors. It was a pain that took him several moments to process, before it sluggishly faded.

_**"There are dozens of shards. We've retrieved three already without Autobot interference, and have Decepticons out retrieving more. We are still stronger than the Autobots. Attempt to retrieve the shard, but if they begin to get the upper hand, retreat. The loss of one shard will not effect our plans greatly. In the end, we **_**will**_** retrieve even the ones the Autobots hold."**_

Thundercracker and Skywarp paused, transforming briefly to give each other unsettled looks. There was something off about that order, almost like one shard was insignificant in Shockwave's optic. That didn't seem right, as figuratively speaking, every shard counted and could tip the balance of power against them, but they didn't _dare_ argue.

_**"Understood. We'll remain behind and watch, attacking once they're out of the city."**_

_**"Good! Now leave me to my business!"**_

Thundercracker winced as an echo of Starscream's agony rippled through him, his processors glazing briefly from a foreign sense of fogginess, before it evaporated, leaving the jet even _more_ incensed to follow Shockwave's orders than before.

_**"Yes, sir!"**_

* * *

**Note** : I don't remember a whole lot about Geography from school, but I was Googling maps for this. If I get city names wrong, or screw up the whole map area around Tranquility, sorry about that. -.-'

Is it me, or is Tranquility in California, and not Nevada? I'm just a little confused. -.-' And it's late at night, so it could be a stupid question. -.-' I will be going with a Nevada map, with cities actually in Nevada... Just an FYI

You know... I just realized... I never did tell about what happened to the remaining shards (or the ones the 'Cons had)... Hmm... I wonder if I have it in me to do a little sequel about the bots searching for them...

**Written** : Dec 26, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	78. Bella's Mission

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

**Note** : FYI the newer big bad of this fiction was inspired by the movie 'Leviathan' and the dream I recently had -.-' The Uncle Phil thing (taken from Fresh Prince of Belaire, which I don't own) was taken from a conversation **Anasazi Darkmoon** and I had. You'll find out who he is later. ;)

* * *

**(Decepticon Base)**

Starscream screamed in agony, feeling the invading presence as it pushed at his processors. He lay writhing on the ground, alone in the room but for Shockwave, who'd calmly ordered the Decepticons to wait outside.

He tried to speak, but found his vocal processors paralyzed. He tried to move, but his left arm, and legs refused to move. His right arm, however, was digging at the creature slowly working it's way under his chest plates, at his shoulder. He could _feel_ it!

Glitch mice had _nothing_ on this _thing_!

It was clearly organic, resembling a spherical shaped mass of flesh with a multitude of tentacles coming from it's body. At first sight, it appeared harmless, climbing across Shockwave's arm with the use of it's tentacles. He'd dismissed it. Slimy. Disgusting, but otherwise harmless and not worthy of his attention.

Bad idea.

The moment Shockwave grabbed him, the creature launched itself at him. Unlike shockwave, it didn't simply _crawl_ across his body. He _felt_ it asserting a presence he didn't know it had, somehow managing to hack into his body, and causing unbelievable agony in the process.

The screams that ripped from his vocal processor, when he could still control it, were unlike anything he'd ever ripped out of an enemy bot's vocals. He didn't think it was possible to scream like he did, not that he noticed. All he noticed was the pain.

And the thing!

He could feel it slithering slowly under his armor, to hide from plain sight. He felt it more keenly than he should have, and red alerts flashed into his systems as he became suddenly all too aware of what was happening.

The creature was somehow melting it's body, fusing with his. He could feel the warm, wet heat of the organic material as it fuzed with his sensitive cables, slithering further and further towards his spark. He felt it as the tentacles reached for his life essence.

In a last, ditch effort, he transformed his hand into a blaster, and blindly shot at the area. It was far enough away from his spark not to be a lethal shot, and despite the agony that nearly snapped what was left of his sensors down into emergency stasis, he felt the paralysis leaving his limbs.

Hearing the un-bot-like snarl, he barely had a chance to raise his blaster, before Shockwave was on him. The single optic gleamed a dark violet, and hands gripped his arm, nearly ripping the limb out of it's socket as he crushed the blaster with his bare hand.

Starscream screamed again, before the sound was cut off with a hand coming down on his oxygen intake pipes, cutting off his intakes. He clawed with his free hand, staring at the utter _hatred_ that was so unlike the bot before him.

There was no telling _what_ that creature was, but clearly _something_ was wrong with Shockwave!

However, before he hand a chance to question what, the bot stiffened. In a moment, Shockwave was off him, and Starscream struggled to his feet as he held his crushed hand, once again a _hand_, to his chest, and struggled to breathe.

There didn't need to be features on Shockwave's face for Starscream to suddenly realize something was horribly wrong. He could _still_ see a triumphant look in the bot's single violet optic, before it flashed red and all emotion faded.

That was about when the blinding pain and fresh alerts hit him.

He felt a small piece of the creature, still alive, as it wriggled along his body. Before he had the chance to transform his other hand into a weapon and vaporize it, however, it dropped off the cables.

...And directly onto his spark.

With a scream unlike any other, Starscream collapsed.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

Taking a shaky breath, I smiled at the guards as I wandered up the steps. I entered the large museum, taking a moment to look around. _All my life I've never been into museums and stuff, but this place is gorgeous!_ It was huge, with an ornately carved structure. It looked like some big fancy place you'd read about in a pamphlet, and I was actually _here_! I couldn't help but look at the walls, before my eyes slowly landed on the artwork hanging there.

That's when I grimaced. _And _that_ is why I've never been to a museum!_ They were considered works of art to most people. Couples and single people stood before the paintings, musing about them. Everyone saw something different, something that I guess spoke to them. To me? They were just paintings. Some were pretty. Landscapes and sunsets, but Sunstreaker's work in our quarters reached far beyond what I was looking at now. And the rest? The Piccassos? The... Well, all the 'abstract' stuff? It looked just that. Abstract. Meaningless shapes and colors.

I guess even being a Cybertronian didn't do much to change my perception on that.

_**"Focus, Bella. We need to move."**_

Jolt's voice caused me to, well, jolt in surprise. Glancing around once again, this time I pinpointed my location, my heart humming burning hotly with my nerves. I moved off to the left, entering a door, and noticing I'd entered an area dedicated to different time lines. The historical section, I guess, or something. I don't know. Museums never made a whole lot of sense to me.

I passed the giant skeleton of a T-Rex, and the plastered form of a Brontosaurus. Several ancient dinosaurs littered this room, along with what I guessed was the plantlife that existed back then. For a moment, I thought about the Beast Wars. Wasn't there a bot named Grimlock? Who looked like a T-Rex?

Musing about Ape Optimus, I wondered how real Optimus would take that information. The fact he was a cartoon ape in one series.

"I wonder what Prime would make of this." I murmured, remembering the Cybertronians had visited our planet so long ago. Shaking my head, I quickly passed the groups of people staring at the different exhibits. I made my way through the room, and into the next, mentally recalling the shard was somewhere here. Then I hissed quietly, noting the security guards making rounds. My eyes sought out and found three cameras, though _they_ weren't really a worry.

I breathed heavily before slowly entering the room and making my way to the nearest exhibit. This room seemed dedicated to cavemen and everything from that time. The first exhibit was tools they'd apparently used for a variety of uses, sitting on shelves, with a rope around them to keep people just out of arm's reach. I didn't see anything unusual, after several long moments of scrutiny.

_**"You'd better hurry. The Decepticons have changed their runs. They're up to something."**_

Jolt's voice sounded more urgent, and I could feel the tension over the internal link as most of the bots seemed to fall quiet. The tension grew in me as I eyed the people around me with worry. Without thinking too much, I grabbed the cell phone and dialed for Sunstreaker. There wasn't even a ring. I knew he was there by the quiet growls. Weird, but comforting. "We need to get these people out of here!" I hissed quietly.

_**"We can't yet. You need to locate the shard first, or you'll be thrown out too, with no chance to grab it." **_I could tell this was the private link, because there was no bots murmuring in the background.

And I hated that he was right. With a growl of my own, which earned me more than one odd look from the people around me and I hung up. _Okay, I _need_ to find that shard!_ I could feel the panic rising within me, but moved on through the exhibits. I passed through most of them, feeling more and more panicked, and more frustrated when I didn't spot anything familiar. Soon, I began to wonder if I'd missed it in one of the other exhibits, and glanced back, considering giving them another look.

"Excuse me."

I wasn't watching where I was going and bumped into someone. With a startled gasp, I turned to find a security officer watching me warily. "Oh! Sorry!" I swallowed thickly, thinking to the evil jets flying overhead, who could attack at any moment.

"You seem lost. Is something wrong?" There was something in his voice, a suspicion.

"No!" I shook my head, taking a deep breath and positively _forcing_ at least _some_ of the stress out of my body. "I mean, I'm just not used to museums. This is all a little new to me." Laughing nervously, I brushed my hair over my shoulder, before remembering my secret weapon. _I'm a girl. I can use that to my advantage._ The man was big and burly, but he was definitely a man. Fluttering my eyelashes, I tried for a winning smile. "I just...wanted to get a little culture. To try and see if I could see what everyone saw in this." I looked around the entire room pointedly.

He seemed to relax and nodded. "Ah, yes. We get those occasionally. Just try to relax. If you think too hard about some of the exhibits, you won't see what most people do. You examine them too hard."

_Gee, thanks Dr. Phil._ I grit my teeth and nodded, keeping that smile fixed to my face. "Yeah, you're right." Laughing again a little, I gave him a small wave. "Well, I don't have a lot of time. I have some paper work to do after this, for my, uh...college thesis. It's about art!"

Looking pleasantly surprised, he nodded again, and stepped to the side. "Well, let me know if you need any help."

_I'm gonna ask a _guard_ about art? _I nodded back, before stepping around him. I knew I wasn't going to ask him for help, and I moved swiftly to the next exhibit.

_**"Nice one, Bella. Quick thinking. That's a big part of making an undercover mission work. You're doing good."**_ Sideswipe's voice was soothing, and I felt a little of my panic ebbing at his words.

I stood in front of a barbarian family, glancing first at the woman, looking for jewellry. She wore nothing but furs, with a strip of fur used to tie an end to her braid. Nothing metal. The child was the same. It was the man that caught my attention. He held a spear with a sharpened tip, and I stared, incredulously.

_How the bloody fricken..._FRAG_?_ I stared at the metal spear head. _The fricken Allspark was whole when they existed!_ Blinking in shock, I could only stare at the spear head. Nothing else seemed to exist.

_**"Bella?"**_

"The Allspark was whole then. How'd it get here?" I grumbled, staring at the runic, sharpened, triangular piece of metal.

"Excuse me?"

I blinked at the woman staring at me oddly, and shook my head. "Musing. History papers and stuff." I huffed a shaky laugh, before grabbing my cell and texting that I found the shard. I hated that I couldn't really sense it like the others, but I knew what I was looking at. It couldn't be fake, either, because no one knew enough about the Allspark to create a fake shard. Not to mention, I didn't really see a reason for barbarians slash cavemen to carve _alien runes_ on their weapons.

I sent the text, putting the cell back in my pocket. I waited, wondering when the alarm would go off, thinking quickly how I could grab the shard without being noticed. I was jostled then, as someone pushed past me, and stumbled into the rope around the exhibit, realizing with a burst of adrenaline that all I needed to do was reach out, and I could grab it.

That's when the alarm went off. It was so loud and piercing that I froze, my ears ringing for a moment as people milled around in confusion, before they began running around. For a moment, I just watched them. Then I was shoved, hard, from behind, and yelped as I fell forward, taking the rope with me. I had to actually reach out and grab the shard, before I ended up impaled on it, and as soon as I curled my fingers around it, I spun.

The man who clearly bumped into me watched me warily. He was a larger man, very...robust. He also wore an impecible suit. He was a dark skinned man, balding, with a white-tinged beard, and eyed me with startlingly clear blue eyes.

"Pardon me." He spoke in a deep voice, before bowing his head and wandering on.

I blinked for a moment. _Holy fragging crap! It's Uncle Phil!_ I blinked again, sensing multiple blips. Then an explosion rang out, and I gasped, ducking instinctually.

_**"Bella! They're attacking! Get the slag outta there!"**_

I didn't need to be told twice. I went the same direction as 'Uncle Phil', heading for the front door, and did a double take when I didn't run into him or even spot him. There was something odd about him, but I forced myself to run with the other people, the shard burning in my hand. When I broke through the double doors, I gasped as I was grabbed at by security, along with other people.

Barely managing to avoid the grasps, I ran down to the yellow Ferrari idling, jumping into the seat as soon as the door opened. As soon as I was in, the tires actually squealed as he pulled away.

"Are we fighting?"

"Slag no! You got the shard?"

I opened my hand, looking down at the runic arrow head. _It _is_ the Allspark. I guess if anything's possible, it could have easily came to the museum, posing as an arrowhead. I...guess..._

"Good. To stay and fight doesn't only put you at risk, but the shard as well." There was a growl as he took another corner. "Not that it matters. The slagging 'Cons are following us!" He snarled. "Frag it, Sides! Hold them off!"

There was a crackle and a Cybertronian curse over the radio system. "Easier said than done with the humans milling about! We're not to expose ourselves, remember?"

"Just get them off our backs!"

"We're _trying_!"

"Stop bickering like an old married couple!" I growled, opening my chest plates. I didn't miss the grunt Sunstreaker gave, or how the interior of the car warmed and he swerved, even as I set the shard in an internal chamber in my body. A holding chamber of sorts. One of the data packets had actually told me that was a safe place to carry things. "Now's not the time, Sunny!" I couldn't fight the blush, however, knowing he was reacting more to my bared spark chamber than the Decepticons currently on our asses.

"Then close your damned chest plates, femme!"

Rolling my eyes, I could have laughed, if an explosion hadn't hit the ground right next to us, causing me to shriek and double over, my chest plates slamming shut painfully. _Ow!_

"Hold on!"

"To what?" There was a choke, and I growled, recognizing his muffled attempts _not_ to verbalize whatever thought had just crossed his processors. I guess I'd gotten to know him pretty well by now, but I rolled my eyes again, and gripped the seats. "_Now_ isn't the _time_! God, you're such a perv!"

"You say that like it's a bad thing!" There was another explosion back a little ways, and Sunstreaker cheered. "Yeah! That's the way!"

"What?" I glanced out the back window, seeing the transformed versions of Boomer, Jolt and Sideswipe, all holding two large Decepticons at bay. Then it hit me we were on the edge of town, and no one was anywhere to be seen. _Though chances are, people can see them from across the city. Damn! Keller's going to have a field day removing even _more_ videos!_ Then I grimaced as Jolt was shoved into a large building, demolishing it with his weight. _And explaining the damages. Another terrorist attack? Maybe he can play it off as a crazy Earthquake?_

The ground shook as Sideswipe spun and sliced into the slightly larger of the two Decepticons, knocking him over a bunch of parked cars, where he left a huge crater.

_Or two?_

And again, as Boomer blasted the smaller one into two more buildings.

_Or...one big one and a bunch of nasty aftershocks?_ I made a face, before hugging the seat. _Please be okay, Sides._

"He'll be fine." Sunstreaker's tone was tight.

Glancing back at the dash, I raised an eyebrow, and it hit me I must have spoken out loud. "You wanna be back there with him." It wasn't a question. Because of me, they were separating.

"I'd rather be escorting my mate to safety, Bella."

Heaving a heavy breath, I ran a hand over the dash. "He'll be okay." It was two 'Cons against three Autobots. They were outnumbered, and they were more focused on us than the Autobots, if the way they kept trying to push past them was any indication.

I watched, carefully, as the smaller 'Con took a blast to the shoulder and staggered back. Boomer immediately ran forward and kicked the 'Con before leveling a second, closer and stronger blast at the same shoulder. Even from where Sunstreaker had parked in a hurry, I could hear the 'Con scream as his shoulder sparked badly. I felt my eyes widen as Sideswipe ran forward with his blade out, only to catch air as the 'Cons both took to the air. "What are they doing?" Loud clicks and whistles sounded around us.

I felt Sunstreaker stiffen angrily. "They're running! They said something about following orders, but that they'd be back and get the shards from us in the end!"

"That's a good thing, right?" I watched Sideswipe carefully, letting out a heavy sigh when he transformed as the jets took off, and drove our way, seemingly unharmed. "Right?" Finally, I glanced forward.

"Not if they have orders to retreat. Starscream wouldn't order it if there was even a slight chance of getting the shard. Something's off." He growled darkly.

My heart hummed heavily. Unfortunately, though I was naive about Starscream's plan, I couldn't help but feel he was right. Something was off. Something most definitely wasn't right. If it wasn't Starscream's way... "Maybe it was Shockwave's orders they're following."

"That makes a little more sense. Shockwave's a deadly opponent." Sunny mused. "He's more of a scientist than an outright, insane warrior. He weighs his options carefully, and only choses the most logical and efficient route. If he thought there was a chance to lose good warriors for one shard, he'd pull them back. He probably also has _some_ sort of plan in motion to get the shards we have. This _isn't_ good!"

"When is it?" I growled, worried. "If it's not Megatron, it's Starscream. If it's not Starscream, it's Shockwave. God, I wish they'd just give up already!"

There was a muffled laugh as the Ferrari hit the road, joining his twin and the other bots. "We all do, Bella. We all do."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_At least we escaped with nothing more than a few lose cables and bruised panelling. We got the shard, and not many, if any, humans were harmed. Unfortunately, I couldn't say the same for the town. Many buildings lay in ruin, with a number of small fires burning._

_Yeah, Keller wasn't going to have a good day. Meaning Optimus would probably hear about it, too._

_Let's just hope Ironhide's mission went as well as ours._

_Oh, and I wonder what was up with 'Uncle Phil'?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Dec 26, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	79. Ironhide's Mission

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : So yeah... I finally decided to try a POV other than Bella's and the 'Cons'. LOL

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_We made it back to the base so fast, I was left trying to process it as Optimus took our shard and gave us all a 'good job' murmur before leaving. I didn't have a chance to tell him about the strange man at the museum, or the unusual actions of the Decepticons. It didn't stick long, though. The twins retreated to their quarters to see Sunfire and polish their armor, relatively unharmed, and I couldn't resist the urge to follow them._

_Still, I couldn't help but wonder about Ironhide and _his_ mission._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

Ironhide grumbled as he entered one of the far too many cities on Earth, staring at the naive humans as he drove past. Will was at the wheel, and Epps was in the passenger seat, both keeping a wary eye out, but no one saying a word. Behind him, he could sense the Arcee triplets, Chromia's battle lust ringing over their bond. He couldn't help but smile at it. Some things never changed, and he was more than fine with that.

But he still couldn't shake an uneasy feeling.

Things were far too quiet. He could sense one Decepticon on his sensors, but something was off about the energy signal. Something unusual. With a mental grumble, he scanned the energy readings, packing the results away in a data file and immediately sent it to Ratchet for analysis, before returning his attention to the mission at hand.

_Slaggin' 'Cons. What're you up to?_

"Ironhide?" Will kept his hands on the wheel, under the pretenses of driving. He felt his heart sink as they neared the source of the energy signal. "Oh, please no." He murmured, pain coming to his eyes. "Ironhide! Are there any Decepticons nearby?"

"It's Starscream. I can smell him." The bot grumbled. "But it's only him. Something's not right."

"Only him? Why send one Decepticon after a shard?" Will frowned, his eyes narrowing as he stared at the target ahead. His face actually _paled_ as they pulled into the parking lot, and he watched the children playing. "God, no. Tell me there's a mistake, Ironhide. The shard _can't_ be here!" Will's voice was shaking, the pain overtaking all else in his expression as he cleched his hands tighter around the steering wheel.

"It's here, Will. If we move fast, we might be able to get the shard and lure Starscream away." Ironhide wasn't a sparkless bot. He understood all too well Major Lennox's issue with the mission at hand, especially considering the fact the man was a father.

Epps groaned, a horrified look crossing his features. "Man, this is _not_ cool! Not cool at all!" Letting his head hit the headrest, he sat there, staring at the children playing, completely clueless to the danger they were in. "Well, we're military, and we look it." A quick glance was shot to his uniform. "We can evacuate them out under a false pretense."

"A bomb threat. Some sort of chemical leak. A crime scene." Chromia's voice came through Ironhide's speakers. Though she'd only met Annabelle recently and was still new to it all, she knew the fears the human had over the endangerment of sparklings. As a femme, it was a feeling ingrained into her own being, and she stared at the children through her holographic eyes, sitting on the seat of her vehicular mode. She brushed her hair over her shoulder, the sunglasses hiding her eyes, as she straightened. "The sooner we act, the better. Starscream's been circling, but the pattern is off. Erratic."

"Something's not right." Ironhide repeated the thought out loud.

"Yeah, I feel it too." Epps nodded, straightening.

_I highly doubt it._ Ironhide thought to himself. He hadn't been referring to the humans, and Epps had no way of sensing a Decepticon. Still, he remained quiet, allowing the humans to gather their thoughts. After all, Will Lennox was the leader of this mission. Not him.

Heaving a heavy breath, Will opened his eyes, which had fallen shut. A new determination filled them and he unsnapped the seatbelt, before opening the door. "Alright. Let's do this. Ironhide, patch me through to the other soldiers." There was only a grunt in reply, but the Major knew it was done as soon as he requested it. "Alright, listen up everyone! We're evacuating the school under the pretense of a bomb threat. I need teams A and B to make sure all the kids get out safely. Scout _every_ inch of that school and make sure _all_ the kids are out. Epps and I will take Chromia and Ironhide's holoforms to the school to find the shard. Let's move, people!" He reached into the back seat, grabbing the metal detector they brought, just in case.

At least that could be explained as looking for the metal components of a buried bomb.

He and Epps exited the truck, Ironhide's holoform forming in the back seat and hopping out as well. The three of them lead the team to the Elementary School. They didn't miss how the teachers looked up, terror crossing their features at the sight of the military men stalking towards them seriously.

Ironhide, however, kept an eye out on their surroundings. He glanced at Will every now and then, and noting the human was far too rigid. He couldn't say anything, however. This was the Major's issue to deal with.

"Excuse me, ma'am." Major Lennox nodded to a woman as she approached. "I'm sorry to bother you, but we have an issue. We need to evacuate the school. A bomb threat was called in earlier."

"But you're not the local Authorities." She was staring at the patch on his chest, which said 'N.E.S.T.', frightened, but still holding a wary, doubtful look.

"No, we're a special response team sent from a nearby military base."

Ironhide had to give credit. Will lied well. Fast and smooth. This human was smart and resourceful, and at the moment, he was an ace at hiding the fear Ironhide's scans were picking up emitting from him.

"A special..." Her eyes glanced to the metal detector. "It's buried?" When he nodded, his expression grim, she pushed her glasses up higher on her nose. She was a middle-aged woman with short, brown, curly hair, and thick-rimmed glasses perched on her nose, dressed in a suit. "I see." It was her turn to look afraid, troubled. She seemed to think for a long moment, however, before nodding and turning. "I'll ring the recess bell to bring everyone back in, and then instruct the teachers to bring all the children outside."

He was only glad there were several buses parked nearby. The only issue... "Do you have anyone to drive the buses?"

Looking over her shoulder, she nodded. "I can call the drivers and have them here as quickly as possible."

Which wasn't fast enough, but Will nodded again. "The sooner the better, ma'am. We'll get to work out in the field." The upside was, the shard's energy signal wasn't coming from the school itself. "I'm leaving my two main teams here to help you while we go search for exactly where it could be." The Major glanced over his own shoulder, noting with a barely hid grimace that Chromia and her sisters weren't dressed in military garb. Then again, he _had_ claimed they were a special response team. Ironhide's holographic form was wearing black jeans and a tight black muscle shirt.

'Off duty' was the first excuse to cross his mind, if the lady asked anything.

When he turned back he could see she was already gone, and Robert was watching him with worry from a few paces ahead.

"You okay, man?"

"No, not really." Steeling himself, Will marched forward, the unease crossing his features again. "We're trained to deal with almost anything, and what mission to I get sent to? One involving a school and a psychotic Decepticon." He growled a little before glancing at Ironhide through his peripheral. "If Starscream hurts any of these kids, I'll kill him myself."

Ironhide only flashed a brief smirk, both amused by the claim, and knowing the Major meant every single word of it.

They made their way around the building and groaned at the size of the field out back, where the signal came from. A bell rang then, and they stayed out of the way as the children made their way in, shooting the military men looks as they went. Soon they were the only ones out there, and they made their way to about the center of the field.

"Okay, let's split up. Chromia, I need you and your sisters to split up and search for where the signal's stronger. Ironhide, I need you to do the same." He hefted the metal detector and switched it on, winging when it screeched near Ironhide. He shot the bot a dry look. "Preferably some distance away so you don't interfere with this thing."

Ironhide grunted as the sisters immediately joined them and did as asked. "It's not my fault your Earth technology is primitive." With that said, he turned and chose a direction the sisters hadn't gone in, slowly wandering off with a look of concentration.

Will turned his dry look to Epps, before rolling his eyes and lowering the detector to the ground. It made no sound, as he swung it back and forth, so he wandered around, pausing at every beep to check.

It took them a little while, finding a bottle cap, a few pennies, even a looney, which Epps pocketed. It was Arcee who called them, stating the energy was stronger in her direction. They jogged her way, with Will only casting one glance over to see that the driver's had shown up and were loading the children into the school buses with haste. Since there weren't _quite_ enough buses, he watched as the teachers loaded spare children into their cars, packing each vehicle full, before they started to pull out. He breathed a sigh of relief, knowing at least the kids would be okay.

Then he turned his attention to the sisters and Ironhide surrounding him. "Anything with Starscream?"

"Still circling, but the pattern's growing even more erratic. I'm willing to bet the slagger's getting ready to make his move." Ironhide's eyes flashed darkly, his voice a growl, and he was tense. He was _waiting_ for it.

"Let's get this shard, then." Will nodded to the bots, who stepped back so as to not interfere with the detector. He immediately turned it on and listened to the beeping, quickly picking up the direction to go and heading that way.

It was just as he finally located the spot, where the detector went, when something unexpected happened.

Just as he swung the metal detector over the spot where the shard was, it gave a sharp whine, and an explosion of light shot up from the ground. Startled, Will dropped the detector with a yelp and jumped back, vaguely aware of Ironhide grabbing his arm in a vice-like grip, and pulling him behind him. Then, he heard the engines of the approaching Autobots, and cursed at the sight before him.

Even as Ironhide and the triplets transformed, cursing about Starscream attacking, he watched, fascinated and shocked, as the detector hovered in the air, glowing. Then, with a fascinating twist of parts, the machine was gone, and he found himself groaning as he faced a small, chittering bot with ruby optics.

"You gotta be kidding me!" Epps cried, grabbing his gun and aiming. "A mini-'Con?"

The bot chittered frantically, looking around with tiny spinning cannons on it's arms, and hopping around on it's one leg. It aimed it's cannon first at Epps, then at Will, seeming more angry and afraid than downright hostile.

That's when a loud explosion and the ground shaking violently knocked the soldiers to their asses on the ground. Will's eyes shot up to see Starscream standing over them, but something was horribly wrong. He couldn't place it, but something seemed off about the bot.

"Give me the shard!"

_We wouldn't if we could._ Jumping to his feet, Will grabbed his own gun and aimed for the larger bot, completely ignoring the tiny one, which was also aiming his little cannons at Starscream.

Ironhide and the sisters immediately opened fire on the Decepticon, and Will and Epps ran for cover, knowing this was a battle they weren't equipped to be part of. As the Autobot Weapons specialist ran forward, the sisters blasted Starscream, distracting him. He shot at them, but Chromia and Arcee jumped to either side and Flare-up blackflipped several times to avoid the blast.

Pretty incredible feat for a femme with one wheeled leg.

Ironhide took his moment and blasted the 'Con square in the chest plates, seeing it as an opening. Then he staggered back in shock when Starscream's optics flashed purple and he didn't do more than stagger back in shock. He raised his cannons again, but jumped to the side when Starscream fired at him, and rolled across the ground.

That was when Starscream's optics landed on something, and the bots followed his line of vision to the tiny ruby-opticed bot who stared up at him, all anger gone from it's tiny frame. It stood there, shaking, and Starscream snarled. "_MINE!" _He lunged forward, and the bot squealed, hopping away as fast as it's single leg would take it, even as Flare-up jumped in front of Starscream and began rapidly firing on him, aiming for his unprotected chest plates.

Will jumped, feeling arms wrap around his leg, and stared down at the bot which had grappled him. Just as he was about to fire at it, he took in the look in it's optics. If there was anything his time with the bots had taught him, it was how to read their emotions through their optics. "Oh damn!" He cursed, carefully lowering a hand to the bot's head, recognizing the terror on it's face. _Guess it's not a 'Con then._

Or if it was, it was one like the former 'Cons, that actually had humanity in it.

He turned his attention back to the fight at hand, feeling a sense of dread coursing through him when their blasts barely seemed to effect the bot. They concentrated their fire on his chest plates, everyone noticing he wasn't even trying to avoid the blasts, and nothing seemed to work.

With a foul curse that made the femmes even stand back, Ironhide ran forward, aiming his cannons at the joints to Starscream's limbs. If they couldn't offline him, they could at least maim him. He blasted the leg joints first, with barely any reaction but to stun the large 'Con. Then he aimed for the shoulders. It was the second shot he fired that got a reaction.

Starscream's optics flashed a violent violet and he screeched a sound that caused all the bots to cover their audios, and the humans to cover their ears. Without even thinking about it, Will snatched up the smaller bot, curling around it as he covered his ears from the horrendous sound. The Decepticon staggered backwards, energon and an unusual, clear substance leaking from the area.

But what was the most horrifying were the organic _tentacles_ slithering along his lines and through the air.

"Oh, dude! That is just _wrong_!" Epps turned a little green around the edges, and looked away. "Tell me those ain't _tentacles_!"

"Tentacles?" Will looked up sharply, eyes widening in horror.

The Autobots all stepped back, their weapons trained on Starscream, who continued to scream in a sound that even disturbed_ them_. They watched as he clutched at the area. Then, as Ironhide prepared to fire again, Starscream leapt into the air and transformed, flying off unevenly. The bots stared after him, before exchanging looks and clicking and whistling with wide, disturbed optics.

As Will straightened, he could feel tiny fingers digging at his uniform. Looking down, he blinked at the wide crimson optics. "Uh..." The bot didn't regard him with hostility now.

"Damn that was freaky!" Epps looked over, before raising an eyebrow. "Dude, what? One kid isn't enough?" He offered a shaky laugh, shaking his head at the tiny bot clinging to his friend. Then he sobered. "Is it a sparkling?"

"I have no idea, man." Will tried not to grimace as he stood slowly, the bot refusing to let go. He was forced to holster his gun and lift the small bot, blinking a little in surprise at how heavy it was. "But I guess we're taking it back with us." He looked up, stepping out from behind the playground set, and straightening. "Hey, 'Hide! What the _hell_ was up with Starscream?"

"Slag if I know!" The bot crouched, looking down at his charge, and raised an optic ridge. "Huh, a sparkling." He stared at it long and hard. "Did it hurt you?"

"No." He looked at the bot that shrank back from Ironhide.

"Good." With a grunt, Ironhide transformed back into his Topkick form and holographic 'Hide formed, walking over. "Something's definitely up with Starscream. I've already sent off a data packet to Optimus, informing him of what we've seen. He's going to call an emergency meeting when we return. Guess we're gonna be short a shard though." He didn't seem too troubled.

"At least the Decepticons didn't get it." Chromia put in, already back in bike form, with her own holographic form. She approached the sparkling, eyeing it with a decidedly softer look, and clicked at it quietly. Then she grimaced. "If what we've heard is right, this sparkling was created with Megatron's parts, reverse engineered for human use, and a shard of the Allspark. I would have Ratchet examine it." Then she cocked her head. "Or rather, _him_."

"You wanna take him. This is, uh...awkward." Will made a face, trying to heft the bot higher, into a more comfortable hold, but the little bot refused to let go of his vest. "And he's heavy."

With a muffled laugh, Chromia clicked at it some more and held out her arms. Obligingly, the little bot let go of the Major and almost leapt at her, curling into her grasp. "He'll need to travel in Ironhide on the way back. Having a one-legged robot riding on a motorcycle might draw too many questions."

"Like slag! I don't want that little-" Ironhide's rant cut off when Chromia shot him a positively acidic look. He actually _stepped_ _back_ before visibly deflating. "Okay, fine." He grunted a little, before disappearing, and the doors to the truck opened.

With a deep breath, Will glanced around. Some of the empty lot next to the school had been demolished, and part of the school was down as well, but most of it was fine. At least they'd already established a believable excuse. Although, they'd have to watch for more videos of giant robots fighting. He sighed a little. The way things were going, they'd soon have to come clean. It would only be so long before people stopped believing their excuses, claiming 'too many people had seen these robots'.

Shaking his head, he climbed into Ironhide, followed by Epps. He waited until the soldiers were also packed up, listening to their reports over Ironhide's radio, before giving the order to return to base. Not once did he forget the little bot curled in the back, currently sleeping. Nor did he forget the tentacles in Starscream.

Yeah, it was safe to say _something_ wasn't right.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Tentacles?_

_I mean seriously... _TENTACLES_?_

_As if the Decepticons weren't creepy enough, now they had organic tentacles and were like... a thousand times harder to kill? Did we piss Primus off somehow? Well, I guess I finally had my answer. Something _was_ coming, and soon, and it was _BAD_!_

_We had a meeting to go over the data packet Ratchet had scanned, and his results. Apparently it seemed like some sort of parasite, but Starscream was the only bot who seemed to have it, so far. He had no idea what it was, or how it fused to the Decepticons' body. All he knew was it seemed to make them stronger, unless the creature itself was hit._

_Really? I mean...we didn't already guess that from Ironhide's report?_

_So I guess that now we'd have to be more careful than usual with the Decepticons. ...Joy._

_On the upside, we now have Hoppy to look after._

_...Don't ask._

_Rika named him._

_And Chromia's taken him in, taking a rather weird liking to the kind of...unusual name for the one-legged Cybertronian._

_...Sometimes I wonder just how many of the people around me are 'special'._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Note** : Don't ask about the name. Yeah... Don't ask. LOL

**Written** : Dec 27, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	80. Mating

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Don't ask about Hoppy/Hopper's name. It's crappy and weird, but at the same time, just a random name that popped out of nowhere, and I decided... Ah! What the hell? After all, it's _Rika_ that named him, not a Cybertronian. XD Also, Merry Belated Christmas, and Happy New Year, everyone! Hope you don't mind the...teasing hint of well...what the title hinted at in this chapter. (blush)

* * *

_Dear Diary, _

_Things really picked up quickly after the incident with Starscream. We retrieved three more shards, losing one to the Decepticons. So far, it seemed like Starscream was the only bot infected with a parasite, but we had no way of being sure. Out of all the Decepticons out there, we only ever ran into the Seekers, more than anything. We hadn't even _seen_ Shockwave in person. I think I was glad for that._

_Hopper really seemed to take to Chromia well, though he was wary around the humans, but for Will. It seemed that, after the Major helped him in the battle, he'd taken to the man, and often followed him around. It was funny to most of us, because Will was more put out and awkward about it than the others. Mainly because he wasn't sure about having the little bot around his infant daughter, which he spent every waking moment with._

_It seemed the mission had really struck home for him, and I felt for him. He spent two days with his family, more or less locked in his quarters._

_But for me? Recharge was hard, for a while. I'd seen the video footage from their mission, from a data packet transfer from Prime himself, and so I had the image of Starscream with tentacles haunting my head for a long time. It was oddly disturbing._

_On a side note, I'd finally managed to tell Prime about 'Uncle Phil'. He didn't get the reference until I explained it, and he suggested it was probably just the actor and an accident. I didn't have proof otherwise, but I just had a feeling it was more to it than that. A feeling I couldn't shake._

_But for now, I decided to take a page out of Major Lennox's book, and spent my time with my twins, and little femme. With every thing happening, I think I finally came to a decision as far as our relationship went. Now, to figure out how to...well...tell them, and if now was really the right time._

_Especially with Sam and Mikeala on the outs._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(A Couple Weeks Later)**

"Just...hold me, okay?"

Sunstreaker was sitting on his berth, once _again_ polishing his paint. Seriously, was that all he did? Oh well. I crawled into his lep, watching as one optic ridge rose, but other than a scowl, he didn't make a sound about his scratched up...lap paint.

I couldn't help a small giggle as I curled into his arms, noting how happy he was to hold me as I asked. Sideswipe was out with Sunfire, trying to get her used to Hopper... Ugh! Hoppy. Hopper. This little mech didn't even _have_ a _single_ name! Anyways, they were out with the new little mech, trying to get my little femme more used to him, considering they were wary around each other yet, and I was left with the yellow twin once again, not that I minded. Well, okay, I missed my time with Sunfire and my friends, but I enjoyed my time with my mates. "Sorry about your paint. I'll help you repaint it later, if you want." The idea seemed naughty to me, though I knew it'd mean little to nothing to them.

For once, he didn't rise to the teasing. He merely held me tighter. "Something's been bothering you. I've seen it in your optics. Is it the parasite?"

"Among about a million other things." I placed my head against the crook of his neck, feeling the warmth and gentle vibrations from his chest plates. "Sunstreaker... I..." I stared at the dark brown cables sliding under his chest plates from his throat, watching as some of them would shift with his breathing. "I guess I'm worried about the shards. We have no idea how many shards are out there. We have no idea how many of the Decepticons have those parasites, or how they got them, or hell! Even if they're aware of them! I'm worried there might be parasites in an Autobot or two."

"We could use them." Sunstreaker put in dryly.

"Oh, ew!" I leaned away from him like he burned me. "I'm _not_ mating with a bot with _tentacles_, thank you very much!" I glared at him, shuddering. "The idea's just plain disgusting!" That took tentacle hentai to a whole new disgusting and disturbing level!

He blinked at me, before smirking. "I never said I was planning to get one. I just said we could use the added strength."

Sighing, I shook my head. "But if what they said is true, it might be more than giving the bot strength. They said Starscream was acting weirder than usual. What if it was doing that? Messing with his systems, or even controlling him somehow?"

Now he frowned, optics flashing. "I say we worry about it when we're faced with a super-strong Decepticon. Until then, let's not plague ourselves with worries." With a tug against my waist, he pulled me against him. "So...if I didn't have tentacles, you'd mate with me?"

"What? You have to _ask_?" I glanced up at him. "I thought you already knew I want to be your mate." I smirked then. "Though, I'll tell you one thing. Tentacles, for a human, are a _major_ turnoff." Then I paused a moment. "Well, most humans." After all, there _was_ tentacle porn out there, not that I'd ever watched it, but geez! What were some people thinking? "I know it's a turnoff for me."

"Then it's a good thing I'm a perfect mech without them." He gloated with his own smirk.

I couldn't help but laugh. "Cocky, aren't we?" Leaning up, I wrapped a hand around the back of his head and pulled him down for a kiss. Then I pulled back and grimaced. "You know, kissing in human form is a _lot_ easier."

"I _do_ have a human form. And we _have_ been meaning to explore human mating habits." There was no mistaking the husky tone to his voice, or the way he seemed a lot warmer than usual against me. His engine almost seemed to growl, and suddenly, I got an idea.

"When was the last time you had a wash?"

His optics flashed and his engine sputtered. "Are you offering?"

I smirked, wiggling against him as I worked myself free of his grip and stood. "Well, I have nothing else to do." Stretching, I purposely made sure he had a good view, before slanting a look over my shoulder. The smirk was fixed to my features, but widened when I saw the intense look in his optics as he openly eyed my body. "Well? You want a wash or not?"

Before I had a chance to blink, I was yelping as he suddenly shot up, scooping me up in his arms. With a hearty laugh, I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and let him carry me out of our quarters, past many humans and multiple bots. I laughed the entire way at his enthusiasm and squealed at Sideswipe as we rushed past, out to the tarmac.

He finally set me down, optics burning brightly, and leaned close to me. "How do you want me?"

My own body temperature shot up a ton and my eyes widened at the dark tone in his voice. There was no mistaking how he meant that, and far too many naughty thoughts crossed my mind. It didn't help humans were snickering as they wandered past. For a moment, I just stared at him. "Hmmm..." The thoughts refused to fade, and my own engine rumbled at the thought. "Lying flat, against a wall, in the wash racks..."

Said humans continued to snicker, but quickly vacated the area, though stuck around close. Seems Ratchet's not the only one with modesty issues. Eyeing them warningly, my head filled with prank ideas, not the least of which was waiting until they were in the shower to steal _all_ their clothes...

Sunstreaker's engine's rumbling caught my attention once more, and his husky look seemed to intensify as he growled loudly. Evidently, he knew what I was thinking, when I replied to him.

"Primus! What did I miss?"

Looking over at Sideswipe, I smirked again. "Sunny asked me how I wanted him." Shrugging, I turned and sauntered over to him, swaying my hips with every step. "So I was telling him." I leaned up, placing an awkward kiss against his lips. "Missed you. How'd everything with Sunfire go?" I looked around pointedly. "I'm noting a distinct lack of a tiny sweet little femme."

He chuckled a little, though the sound seemed huskier on his end, as well. "Plan worked. Hopper and her have been getting along great. Chromia let me leave her with them to get to know each other more. I was on my way back when I saw Sunstreaker rush past." He shivered then. "And from what I felt over the link, I _had_ to know where he was stealing you away to."

I thought about it a moment, and cracked up. "Oh, it's no big deal. I was just being abducted by an alien." I could have fallen over laughing at the irony of the statement, but Sunstreaker's gaze was still beyond intense, and upon spotting it, my breath caught in my chest. "Uh..."

"_Someone_ promised me a wash." He grumbled.

"Oh?" Now I had Sideswipe's undivided attention. "I've never had one of those. Mind if I watch?"

I straightened, remembering that he _hadn't_ ever been washed. With a smirk that had his engine revving, I shrugged. "Of course you can. I'll need Sunstreaker to transform into his vehicle form though." Recalling his reaction to the last wash he had. I shivered, before transforming into my human form and gathering the things needed. This time I used warm water, filling a bucket and wetting a soft sponge.

When I turned around, I wasn't surprised to find Sunstreaker in car form. Sideswipe sat down a little way behind us, watching intensely, and I walked up beside Sunny, before casting an evil wink at Sideswipe. Then I turned to the Ferrari. I plopped the warm, wet sponge down on his hood, and felt him jump a little. "No cold water, this time. I was just pissed at you last time."

"I got that much." He grunted.

I felt like my face would split from the huge grin as I slowly stroked the sponge along his hood. As I worked on the center, I didn't get much of a response, but I did notice his engine seemed to go quieter. As I hit the seam at the edge, however, I heard a small rumble I recognized as a purr. As I stroked the sponge back and forth, using my finger nails to press the sponge further into the seam, the purr got steadily louder, and when I glanced up, even Sideswipe was smirking.

"So far, I like what I'm seeing. What do I need to do to get a wash?"

I winked again, before slipping the soapy sponge down over the hood. When it began to get dryer, I wet it again, working over the front windshield, making sure to spend extra care getting into the seams. A few times, Sunstreaker jumped, and I'd spend _extra_ time around those areas, until the purr of his engine turned into a rumble. Then I'd move on. The car settled down lower on his axels and almost seemed to push into the touches.

At times, he almost reminded me of a happy cat. Purring and nudging me, and pushing into the strokes.

As I worked over the front hood and back, the only responses I got were growls and purrs from the seams, but when I glanced again at Sideswipe, his optics were burning and even his own engine was growling loudly.

"Is it safe to say he likes it?" I asked mock innocently.

Both bots growled loudly, growls that were _not_ of anger.

Going back to grinning, I dropped to my knees and began working on the wheels. Something I didn't do before. But as soon as I started to work, Sunstreaker yelped and jolted, pulling away. I paused then, frowning. "Did I hurt you?"

He growled, and when I looked at his twin, Sideswipe shook his head at me with silent laughter.

"I just don't think you want to wash anything any lower." He glanced around, almost pointedly, at the soldiers watching, and the bots who seemed to move a good distance away during the wash. I also noticed now _none_ of the bots were facing us. In fact, it almost seemed like they were struggling to ignore us.

I felt my cheeks burn, realizing just how public this was, and that the other bots probably all realized what I was doing. "Ohhhh." Ducking my head, I dropped the sponge in the bucket of now cool water. "I seeee." I bit my lip and proceeded to grab a hose, rinsing him off. Then I raised an eyebrow, and ducked down, using the hose to rinse in the wheel wells.

"HEY!"

Sunstreaker yelped and jumped forward. I couldn't help but laugh so hard I fell to my knees. "Oh my God! I've _never_ seen a car leave the ground like that!" I cried out, laughing. I sprayed him with the hose againg, giggling like mad. Then I paused, more than aware of the _loud_ growling of two sets of engines. Glancing over as Sideswipe, I saw no smile on his face. "Uh-oh..." I jumped to my feet, even as a newly cleaned Sunstreaker transformed, and Sideswipe stood up.

Blinking at their looks, I transformed as well, dropping the hose. "Hey now... I was just playing around, you know..." My body felt burning hot as I stepped back.

Sunstreaker stalked towards me, causing me to back up at the look in his optics. "We know." He growled darkly, no sign of amusement in his own features.

"Yip!" Turning, I ran off into the hangar, jumping over humans and dodging around bots. _So much for Sideswipe's wash... _I heard them chasing after me, and felt like prey. Still, I couldn't help but giggle as I dashed into our quarters, and purposely didn't lock the door. As I turned, I watched as the bots nearly shot into the room, eyeing me more than intensely. Their optics were _so _bright.

Sideswipe, the first into the room, stalked over to me, and quickly wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me to him. The heat coming from his chest caused me to gasp. Especially when my own body heated at the touch. He leaned down, nuzzling my cheek with his face as his fingers trailed teasingly along the seam in my own armor. "Bella..."

I pressed against him, nervous, but wanting the touch. I trailed my own hands up to his chest plates, gently tickling along the center seam and feeling the catches snap open as soon as my finger tips brushed against them. "Sides..."

"Is this okay?" His voice was raw, raspy, and he pulled back, his chest plates open enough for me to see the beautiful multi-faceted glow of his spark.

I couldn't answer. I barely even heard him. I was mesmerized by the shine of his spark, all the colors shining beautifully against my own chest plates. I'd seen Jetfire's spark in the movie, when he pulled it out of his chest to give it to Optimus. I'd seen Sideswipe's when Ratchet opened his chest plates, to fix broken cables near his spark. I'd even seen Sunstreaker's, when he lay motionless on Ratchet's berth, his chest torn apart, but this... This was so much more intense. Personal. Intimate. Every time I spotted even the slightest glow of their sparks, I wanted to see more.

So it wasn't a surprise when I reached out. My fingers curled around his chest plates, which actually pulled apart more at the touch. I could see the beautiful orb like a living blue diamond in his chest. It wasn't smooth glass. It was faceted, shining in every hue of blue. Reaching out to it, I trailed my fingers gently over it, watching the energy arc out and touch my fingers back, like a gentle caress.

Sideswipe gasped, jolting, and his grip on me tightened. "Bella!"

His voice snapped me out of my trance, and I pulled back, my head shooting up. "Did I hurt you?" I knew so little about their mating. Sure, I knew they mated with their sparks, but was touching it with my hands a bad thing?

He groaned a little, and I didn't miss the look of disappointment that crossed his features. "No." His voice was strained, his hold tight. "Is this... Is this okay?"

I looked back at his spark, more than aware how badly I wanted to be with him. I was nervous. "I've never done this before." Looking up at him shyly, I heard my cooling fans switch on. "I... I don't really...know what to do."

"If you're ready, we can teach you."

I looked to Sunstreaker, who'd remained silent through all this. "What about you?"

His entire body set was rigid, but his optics were softer. "Only if you're ready."

I thought about it, before glancing again at Sideswipe and smiling softly. I still felt horribly shy, but if anything, whatever my look showed seemed to spur him on further. His fingers twitched against my back, and he pulled me closer to him. In response, my chest plates parted, the catches falling open with ease. "I'm ready." I nodded, before smiling again.

His engine revved, and he breathed shakily, before pulling me against him. I felt both our chest plates opening, as if my body knew what to do, even if I didn't. I felt pleasure course through me, as his spark seemed to move, exiting his chest and moving towards my own spark. I could feel mine doing the same, and his fingers dipped under the edge of my armor to touch something that had me gasping, sparks flashing in my vision.

Sunstreaker moved forward then, brushing his own hands over me in the gentlest yet most urgent of caresses I'd ever thought possible.

Gasping again, I arched into their touches, feeling the firm pressure as my spark brushed against Sideswipe's, and feeling the unbelievable heat of Sunstreaker at my side. Then I was lost on the current of pleasure.

* * *

**(Decepticon Base, Normal POV)**

Shockwave stared ahead of him with a smirk in his optic. He stared at the empty, violet gazes of the Seekers and a few of the Decepticons. After he'd infected Starscream, the other bots were easier to get. Half the team still hadn't been infected yet, but that didn't matter. The ones that had would help speed up the process.

However, he glanced at Starscream, off to the side. The bot was locked in emergency stasis as his parasite worked sluggishly to get his systems up and repairing the damage. With the parasites in their systems, they were virtually invulnerable, but it seemed the Autobots had found the one vulnerability, and he growled, optic flashing. Once they were damaged, their repair systems worked slower than ever to repair them.

_"We need to be more careful. Losing any of our troops to the Autobots, before the full plan is ready to be set into motion, is not logical. Protect yourselves better. We have only a few more shards to collect yet, before we can retrieve what the Autobots have managed to collect."_

Looking over his shoulder, he stared at the large mass of flesh and tentacles, which had been moved to the base, once the main bots were infected. It still remained hidden, kept in a part of the cavern system no bot used, and it had grown with the energy they'd been able to feed it. He wasn't naive to the fact pieces of the creature, some of it's young, had managed to escape. It just wasn't his concern.

_"We need to gather the shards." _With his tone emotionless, he turned back to the bots._ "From now on, if Autobots are spotted in the viscinity, attack them for the shard, but remain on guard. We cannot afford to lose anyone, right now. If there's a chance of offlining, retreat. We will retrieve their shards, no matter what."_

The bots all nodded and saluted, their own gazes empty.

_"Dismissed."_

He watched as they left, before turning back to the creature.

_"We will get your energy source. Soon enough you will never be hungry again."_

* * *

**Written** : Dec 27, 2010

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	81. Attacked

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_So now I'm mated, and that's all good and well. I feel a little more...at ease. Complete. Happy. I can sense the twins, like I suddenly have my very own personal bond with them. Well, I _do_, but... Anyways, I was finally mated to the twins, but... Did they go around sending out a memo or something? I mean, as far as I knew, I didn't look any different. I doubted I _smelled_ any different, at least by human standards. So why was everyone smirking at me, or waggling their optic ridges/eyebrows?_

_I swear to God, if I get one more 'It's about time' comment, I'm going to start ramming flagpoles up everybot's tail pipes._

_I mean, can we _focus_ here, please? Especially with the incoming Seeker?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

"Would you _stop staring_?" I growled at the minor twins, both of which looked jealous as they gazed at me. "My God, do I have 'I just got laid' written on my aft or something?" My body burned with embarrassment, but I could feel the amusement from both the twins. I felt like my mind was on overload, because I was trying to make sense of everything I could sense from them, but that didn't mean I didn't shoot them a rather venemous glare. "It's not funny! Watch it, you two! I'll fix your fragging chest plates to let your spark hang out when you're wandering around and see if you're laughing then!"

Ironhide choked nearby, before shaking his head. "I'm only reading one incoming Seeker! The signal's off, like Starscream's was, but it ain't him." At least _he_ was trying to focus!

"They're either running reconnaissance, or it's a trap." Spinning to the other bots, I tried to spot all our human allies. Walking around the humans was easier, and the fear of them getting hurt or killed was lessened. Not so much as I didn't think about it, or hurt about the thought of it, but it wasn't so bad as to maim me like it would have, before. "We need to make sure the shards and the humans are protected." I spotted Rika arguing with a soldier, and raised an eyebrow. "Rika! Go inside, dumbass!"

"No way!" She spun, glaring at me. "Everyone else is learning to protect themselves!"

"I thought guns weren't your thing!"

"Neither are wars, and look where I am!"

I cringed then. War wasn't a lot of peoples' 'thing', but they were here regardless, and I felt horrible for it. I mean, in the movie, a lot of them weren't _part_ of the war. Not actively. Not directly. There wasn't even anything to suggest they had ever come to stay at the island, or been targeted. So I couldn't help but be more or less positive it was my interference that led to them being here now.

"Don't blame yourself, dumbass!" She shot, glaring. Wonderful how well she knew me, huh? "It was my choice, remember? Besides, it's not like the bots can fit in the building! If we're attacked, I just want the means to do something about it!"

_If an Autobot can't make it in, I'd like to see a Decepticon try, without destroying the entrance._ I thought with a face. "And if you shoot Mikeala or Sam by accident?" Bumblebee hissed at my words, shaking his head rapidly, before looking around, probably for said charges. "Or Sarah Lennox, or even hit anywhere _near_ Annabelle?"

Ironhide froze a moment, before spinning in a flash, and aiming an armed cannon at Rika. "You will _not_ touch a fire arm of any kind, femme, or Decepticons will be your _last_ worry!" He snarled, optics flashing.

Without hesitation, I raised a blade at Ironhide's neck, raising an eyebrow while I was at it. "What the bloody hell did you think I was getting at? Now, if you don't mind, get your cannon out of your aft and pointed towards the _enemy_ please!"

Rika raised her hands in surrender, looking more worried now about Ironhide than being unarmed during attack. "Got it, big guy!" Waving at us, she turned and ran back into the base, leaving me to roll my eyes and lower my weapon.

Ironhide growled at me, optics flashing.

I growled back, before smirking. "I'd say you need to get laid, but I have it on good authority that's not the case." I smirked at Chromia, behind him, who began to laugh heartily, before an explosion rocked the ground some distance away. Immediately, all joking was done, and we all turned towards the incoming jet. "Who is it?"

Ironhide seemed to scan the jet that transformed into a large mech, blasters aiming wildly. "Ramjet." He tilted his head. "But he's alone. Seekers wouldn't go on suicide missions like-ah slag it! They're under Starscream's influence." With a shrug, he raised his cannons. "State your business, 'Con!" He snarled loudly.

The Decepticon looked at him startlingly blankly, continuing to aim his blasters at whoever twitched. His entire body shuddered near violently, and his head twitched awkwardly. He glanced around, his optics flashing unusually, but didn't respond. It was actually like he didn't even hear us.

"What are you doing here, Ramjet?" Optimus stood tall, part of the large circle of Autobots. The humans had for the most part taken cover, but were also watching the encounter closely. When he didn't get a response, Optimus took a step forward. "Ramjet?"

"What happened to Thrust and Dirge?" Sideswipe was at my one side, standing so closely, the heat from his body was almost overwhelming. Sunstreaker was pressed right up against my other side, and though their over protectiveness was touching, it was also kind of annoying.

Pushing them away, I groaned and stepped away from the 'Con, effectively giving myself a little room. However, other than a glance, no one really paid me any attention but for the twins, who kept their attention split between me and Ramjet. I wanted to shout at them to focus, but I was more unnerved by Ramjet's strange actions than anything. I didn't want to do anything to draw his attention, and it must have radiated through the new bond, because the twins moved a step closer to me, eyeing me worriedly.

At the sound of the names of his trine mates, Ramjet's optics flashed, and he straightened, still twitching. "The shards." His voice was empty of emotion, almost hollow, but still sounded...well...like a Cybertronian, as far as I was concerned. "I want the shards." He stepped forward, aiming his blaster at Sunstreaker, who twitched harshly in response to the fact the Decepticon had -possibly unknowingly- taken a step towards me.

"Ya gotta be kiddin'!" Jazz snorted and shook his head.

"Yea, we's ain't gonna give ya jack!" Mudflap grinned haughtily.

"'Specially not ta some crazeh glitchin' 'Con!" Skids chimed in, shuddering uneasily. "Yous creepy, dude!"

"I second that." I grumbled quietly.

"We second, third and fourth that." Chromia hissed, shuddering along with her sisters when I glanced over.

"I want the shards, and I'm not leaving without them." He stepped forward, seeming to snap out of his funk.

Ironhide snarled, even as the twins stepped in front of me, making sure his path to me was fully blocked. "Oh, you're leaving, if I have to blast you into the middle of the ocean myself."

"Wrong, Ironhide." Optimus stepped forward, optics narrow and a deadly calm look on his features. "Ramjet isn't leaving. Not with the knowledge of the location of the base, and the information he's been sending back to the other Decepticons."

My head shot to him, and I gave him my undivided attention. I'd been learning to tune out the new voices in my head, as well as tune into one whenever I wanted to, but I'd totally tuned everything out but the threat before me. That's why I apparently missed out on scripts of Cybertronian writing flashing across the top of my vision. I could only make out Cybertronian curses, but the screams and shouts in my head suddenly came back full force, explaining it.

_**"The slagger's scanning us! He has the bolts to come here and openly scan us without even **_**trying**_** to hide it?"**_ Sunstreaker was snarling like a rabid animal, in my head, only slightly less so verbally.

_**"He's gotta be sending the info back to the others. He has to know there's no way out of here."**_ Sideswipe was only marginally less hostile. _**"It's a slagging suicide mission."**_

My eyes widened, and I stepped back again, feeling even more fear run through me. If this was a suicide mission, was he even aware of it? Judging by the odd way his optics flashed and the way he jerked every now and then, I was willing to bet he did, but whatever the reason, he didn't seem to care. "Is it the parasite?"

Heads shot to me, mostly briefly, but as Ramjet eyed me, his optics flashed bright violet. I shrank down as he suddenly seemed much more focused than before, and stepped towards me again, causing my twins to snarl and raise their blades threateningly.

"Back off, Decepti-creep!" Sunstreaker snarled, shaking a little from the restraint he showed.

Ramjet didn't seem to hear them, his optics locked on mine. Suddenly, I felt like the whole world was drowned out. I felt frozen, helpless, and numb. It was just a stare, but it was like he was seeing something in me. Something he wanted very much, and his look was disturbingly focused and intense. I wanted to move out of the line of his sight, but I couldn't force myself to move.

"Hey! Get your filthy optics off our femme!" Sideswipe called, his voice distant.

The red of his optics was tinged purple. An odd, seemingly random thought that crossed my mind. They were red, like they should have been, but tinged with a purple that I really noticed, after staring at him for a while. They were empty but focused on me. They had life, but no emotion. It was eerily frightening. Haunting, even.

I felt cold.

"You hear me? Get your fragging optics off our femme, before I pull them out with my bare hands!"

There was a low snarl, and the resounding blast startled me. It came from alarmingly close, and it took me a moment to blink, breaking myself from the trance. It took me a second to realize my oxygen tanks hurt, and I inhaled sharply. Then I realized that he was a lot closer than he should have been, and instinctually stepped back, even as he turned around, shoulder smoking.

"You're not going to touch her."

The low snarl, not belonging to either twin, brought my attention to Barricade, who's blaster was smoking. I stared at him, and he glanced around at the bots, snorting at them with barely concealed contempt.

"What? He was marching towards an allied unit, ignoring orders to stop." The former 'Con shrugged, like it was no big deal. "And if he's got one of those parasite things in him, I don't want him anywhere near her." Then he seemed to realize he was singling me out, and sneered at the others. "Or anyone, for that matter. Knowing you guys, you'd blame one of us for it." He gestured vaguely towards Soundwave and his casseticons, and Blackout. Despite the fact he clearly saw me like a sister -according to Frenzy's earlier confession and the 'Con's own actions around me- he still didn't openly admit it.

"Hnn." Sunstreaker sneered at him, before turning his attention back to the 'Con.

But as if the blast seemed to break some unspoken truce, Ramjet snarled. He spun on Barricade, and launched himself at the bot, only to be blasted by several bots. The circle quickly broke up, bots moving into strategical locations, while others rushed at him, only to be tossed aside like so much trash. I watched, horrified, as Ironhide and Prime themselves couldn't even grab him.

Then, Boomer managed to grab a piece of the armor, around the shoulder. With a swipe of a short blade, he managed to shear a piece of the armor off, and I felt my stomach roil as tentacles slithered around along the bared protoform and cables.

_It's like some sort of sick horror movie._ I was reminded of such horror movies as Leviathan and The Faculty, with the strange, slithering monsters, that just stole any appetite on appearance. They were much larger than on Starscream, amassed and wiggling, inching along all the lines and wires like organic muscles and veins, writhing with their own life. With a shudder, I held my blades ready, standing out of the way. This wasn't my fight. This was some sort of super 'Con, that not even the professional bots could handle, let alone me.

The tentacles, some of them slithered lose, away from the cables, but the rest of them slithered further into the armor, seeking to hide from their vulnerable position. I felt frozen with terror, watching. Especially when Boomer reached for him again. I watched, silently frozen, as the tentacles lashed out, like they had their own life. Well, they did, but... They wrapped around his wrist, causing other rushing bots to immediately pull back as he fought with them.

He tried to pull them off, but every time he got one lose, another slithered around his wrist, working their way up his arm. Some disgusting slime slid along his fingers, dripping slowly towards the ground as the tentacles wrapped around cables.

"Hey!" He called out, pulling even harder.

With a snarl, Barricade was suddenly there. While Blackout appeared and held Boomer steady, Barricade shot at the tentacles, severing them from the body of the parasite, and then struggling to pull them from Boomer's arm, even though they kept moving.

I tried not to gag, as they writhed. "They're _still_ freakin' moving!" I found myself shouting in horror.

"Slag it, get off!" He cried, shaking his arm to try and knock the rest of the tentacles off. The only thing he succeeded in doing, however, was breaking Blackout's hold, and making it harder for 'Cade to help.

"Would you hold still?" He snarled, optics flashing.

I remembered Ramjet and turned to find him rushing at them, having knocked down _Soundwave_ of all bots. Soundwave, who even _bigger_ than Prime. "Look out!" Raising my blades, I rushed forward. I was terrified, and admittedly shaking embarrassingly, but I _had_ to help. _Pot shot and run._ That's what was on my mind. I sliced at Ramjet's back from as far as I could, and grimaced when despite a few sparks, he barely even paused.

But then he did, and I froze again.

He stiffened, and spun around, staring at me. Back was that glazed, intense look. He snarled and stalked towards me, and I quickly began backtracking, stumbling when I almost stepped on a soldier in the process. "Uh...bad super 'Con?" I muttered, feeling like my heart was going to stall. I tried to swallow my nervousness, but it was like there was a lump in my throat, not only making it hard to swallow, but to breath in general. "Down 'Con. Bad 'Con." My blades shook, and I suddenly remembered I was armed. Raising my blades, I stopped backing up, and frowned. "Back off!"

He sneered at me, seeming like he was towering over me as he smirked. "Hungry." His optics flashed violet again, and I couldn't help but step back.

"What?" I blinked, frowning, and let out my breath forcefully, feeling like I'd been sucker punched. "I'm not a tall glass of energon! Pig!" I grimaced a little, and struggled to hold my ground. "Now, _back off_!" He stepped forward again, and I raised my blades in response. He didn't even hesitate, however, and he lashed out with a speed that caused me to jerk more in surprise than in reaction. Hell, I didn't have a _chance_ to react before a sharp pain ran up my arms, hard enough to make me cry out and lose my grip on my blades.

My arms tingled painfully, the pain echoing up my shoulders even, and I staggered from the shot. Then I felt my arms being siezed in a painfully tight grasp. "Dude, what's with people and grabbing my arms!" I tried to ignore the pain shooting up my wrist as I pushed forcefully against the Decepticon currently invading my personal space. "Hey, let me go!" My voice wavered, and my entire body tensed.

Hell, if not even Ironhide or Prime could grab and hold him, what chance did _I_ have?

I found my eyes shooting to the tentacle thing, and my entire body went cold to see how every tentacle was suddenly pointing at me, reaching for me. The creature almost seemed to be reaching away from his body, careless of what kind of danger it could be in, to get to me. It was like my stomach bottomed out, and I actually stopped breathing. I would have probably lost my energon, if I'd had enough awareness to do so.

"FRAG OFF!"

Before I had a chance to even gasp, a blur of yellow cut into my vision. I heard the incredibly loud crunch of metal on metal, and there was a spray of sparks and energon. There was a loud shriek that sounded oddly reminiscent of Starscream when he'd been injured, and suddenly I was free. Then a hand was pressed firmly against my chest plates, and I was shoved.

More arms grasped me, and I immediately began struggling. I hadn't seen who grabbed me, and I was suddenly panicking. "Let me go, you stupid, parasitic bastard!"

"Bella, relax!" The arms released their grip on my arms, only to wrap around me, and despite my terror, I froze, then relaxed into Sideswipe's hold. "That fragger's not gonna lay hands on you again."

Sunstreaker smirked from next to us. "What can I say? I'm good."

I swallowed shakily, before something caught my eyes. I glanced at Ramjet, only to do a double take and pause. He was staggering around, shrieks emitting from his vocal processors as he staggered back and forth, seeming unable to keep his balance or calm down. Then again, considering his arms were laying on the ground, useless, I could understand that. "You...cut his arms off..." I shivered against Sideswipe, my heart pounding so hard, my chest actually hurt.

Sunny huffed. "He dared to touch _our_ mate! He got what he deserved."

There was a growl. "Let's offline him and get it over with!"

"Wait!"

I expected the hesitation to come from Optimus. He wasn't a cold, ruthless killer. It was who he was, but when the voice came from Ratchet, instead, I couldn't help but focus on his voice. My eyes were riveted on the bot staggering around, like the loss of his arms had somehow knocked his processor offline, and my ears were trained on Ratchet's voice.

"We need to know more about these parasites. I can't learn exactly how they work from an offlined bot."

Boomer walked into my line of vision, kicking the 'Con hard enough to knock him down, before keeping a foot on his chest plates to keep him down. There was a nasty glare on his features, his one arm coated with a slimy substance that made me cringe. "You don't expect him to cooperate." He growled.

"Well, no, but we can sedate him. I need him online so I can see how the parasite has integrated into his systems, and how it's feeding on, or controlling him."

"You're kidding!" I snapped, turning sharply to Ratchet. "You _did_ see how easily he tossed _Optimus Prime_ aside, right? I mean, he's one of the biggest Autobots out there, and Ramjet flung him around like he was a rag doll! Let's not even get into how easily he fought off _Soundwave_! What, exactly, did you plan on restraining him with, to keep him from getting lose? What if he does? What if he somehow infects or kills other bots?"

"I sincerely doubt he will be going far without arms." Ratchet shot the struggling bot a pointed look.

"I'm afraid I must agree with Ratchet." Optimus sighed, looking really troubled. "These parasites are unlike anything I've ever seen before. I'd like to know what they're capable of, myself. If this is the beginning of an epidemic, I want to make sure no Autobot ever gets infected. We will need to be careful, but I do believe Ratchet has a point."

Barricade snarled darkly, but slowly lowered his weapon. He clearly didn't like the idea, but seemed to have learned to hold his tongue. At least in Optimus' presence. Undoubtedly, other bots would hear him whining later.

However, just because a former Decepticon had learned restraint, it didn't evidently mean my mates had.

"You're kidding!"

"He slagging attacked our mate! We should get to offline him!"

"Slowly, and painfully!"

"Yeah!"

I shook my head, despite being in Sideswipe's hold still. It was hard to believe the battle was over almost as quickly as it had begun, and just how quickly the bots seemed to relax. The humans had begun to mill around, and Ironhide and Jolt were focused more on tending to humans who'd been injured in the rush than anything. The rest of the bots were standing around, most verbally protesting the capture of the bot.

"Is he still sending information back to the Decepticons?" I asked quietly, watching as Sunstreaker turned to look at me, visibly scanning me, before seeming satisfied.

"No." Optimus' optics flickered. "It seems someone hit him with a well placed blast, and it took out the transmitter and the receiver. He will be unable to send or even receive communications internally."

"Someone?" I raised an eyebrow, feeling remarkably better now that the enemy was immobilized and I was surrounded by friends.

Jazz raised his hand. "Guilty." He shrugged then. "I din't want 'im sendin' battle data back ta da 'Cons."

"Good idea." Ironhide nodded as he stood, Lennox and Epps seated comfortably on his shoulders, and a slightly shaken Rika and Sunfire being held out to me.

I hissed at him, stiffening, before reaching out and snatching them out of his grip. "You brought them out here with the enemy still _conscious_?" I all but snarled, holding them both against my chest plates. "Sunfire's a fragging _sparkling_!"

"He's immobilized." He huffed, as if nothing was wrong.

My eyes narrowed, and he paused. "He's. Still. Conscious. And. Aware." I carefully pronounced each word. "_And_ he's infected with an unknown parasite. We have no idea how he got infected, where he got infected, but it's probably contagious, and you bring a _sparkling_ near him?" I couldn't believe it. Sure, there might not have been a viable threat at that moment, but that didn't mean I wasn't feeling threatened. I wasn't so worried about Rika. She was an adult, and knew what was going on. Sunfire wasn't. "I can't fragging _believe_ you!"

Pulling free of Sideswipe's arms, I put Sunfire and Rika down, before transforming, and then I took them inside, without a backward glance.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Was it Ironhide's irresponsible behavior that irked me so much? Or the lingering terror that we'd be keeping an online enemy, infected with an unknown parasite, on the base? Or that he brought my vulnerable little girl out there near the enemy? All I knew was I was _mad_! I was worked up, with lingering fear, but more annoyance and anger than anything._

_Not even Rika could calm me down._

_I held my bitty sparkling, still marvelling at her size, and took comfort in knowing she was all right, even as she curled against me, cooing softly. I ignored the twins, when they came back, despite their almost demanding to know if I was okay. I ignored Ironhide when he stopped by later to offer a brief, gruff apology._

_I was mad at him. Enough said._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Jan 6, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	82. Irrational

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I have officially made myself a liar on Twitter, twice. I've said 'an update is coming soon', only to forget for days to update -_- I have no excuses. I'm totally addicted to my online game, where I'm in charge of taking care of a guild, and I honestly just keep thinking "I'll do it a little later, when things quiet down". Yeah...because things _ever_ quiet down on that game -_- LOL. But here's the update, as promised!

* * *

_Dear Diary_,

_So Ratchet's plan didn't work as well as planned. Ramjet was taken to the medical bay to be examined, and it was the same night Ratchet reported he'd offlined. Apparently the slimy thing was more sentient than it appeared. From what he could tell, the creature had wormed -literally, at that- it's way around his spark and into it. From what he could tell, it was controlling him. _

_It had somehow blocked out his own mind and personality. After checking his memories, they just went blank after Starscream grabbed him and remembering an unbelievable pain._

_It was disturbing to hear._

_Even more disturbing? When Ratchet began prodding at the creature, trying to find a way to remove or destroy it, it apparently clenched around his spark, crushing it. The creature died not long after, but only because it launched itself at Ratchet, who already had his spinning sawblade weapons out. He sliced the thing apart, before calling Jazz -Optimus insisted on security, no matter what- who blasted it into literal dust._

_So much for their experimentation._

_At least no good guys were lost. That's one thing, I guess._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

The bot stumbled to his room. He rubbed at his temple, feeling oddly heavy and exhausted. Whenever someone glanced at him, he waved them off, and they moved on. No one noticed the movement in his wrist, just at the edge of his armor. Not even he did. He stumbled on, wearily making his way to his quarters, where he slid inside and shut off the lights, before sighing a little.

Oddly enough, the lights were bothering his optics, not that he could explain it. He figured he was just tired from the events of the day before. He'd be lying if he said the events of yesterday, or technically, last night, hadn't bothered him in the least. He might have seemed unflappable about most things, but that didn't mean things like this didn't creep him out. Especially all things considered.

With a grimace, he made his way to his berth and lay back. His chest plates hurt. No, everything hurt. He felt like he'd been playing kickball with Megatron, and Megatron was using _him_ as the ball. It was especially concentrated around his wrist, arm, shoulder, and his chest. In fact, as more time passed, the pain seemed to spread. However, instead of running to the medic, he left it.

After all, he was fairly certain it was just a sprain from trying to fight.

Unfortunately, as he struggled to relax, to ease the joint cables in his body to ease the pain, the pain only got worse. In fact, the more he relaxed, the faster the pain spread, as if his letting his guard down seemed to trigger the injury to worsen. His optics darted around, and he onlined them and sat up sharply as a pain ran through his chest plating.

The urge to scream hit him, on the most basic, instinctual level, that the only thing that kept him from complying was the sudden loss of his vocal capacities. The scream rose in his throat, the energon cycling through his body in panic as he realized something was truly wrong, but as it hit his lip plates, they sealed shut. Against his will. They slammed shut and remained as such, causing the scream to come out a muffled groan.

As quickly as his vocal capacities were suddenly lost, the arms that held him up lost their strength, causing him to fall back on the berth with a dull clang. A tiny part of him wanted to laugh with relief. Despite the panic racing through his circuits, he figured someone _had_ to have heard him fall, and would check on him. When they realized something was wrong, they would call the medic, and everything would be okay.

But as quickly as the urge to vent in relief hit him, it faded as a new pain hit him. His body convulsed sharply as his vision suddenly sharpened, before disappearing as well. The blind, instinctual panic hit him again, stronger than before, and he found he was unable to breathe. Not because that function had disappeared as well, but because his chest was thick with agony and fear.

By this point, he suddenly became all too aware of the movement. The thing he didn't feel before was now suddenly moving more urgently, causing pain in it's wake. He could feel the slithering in his arm, a slighter sense of it running up past his shoulder, and down into his chest plates.

He didn't need to be the insane scientist, or crotchety old medic to know what was wrong.

Somehow the creature had gotten within him. Probably from the struggle before. Now, it was taking control of his body, much like it had with...

Gasping, his body arched against his will, before falling back mutely, and that was it. With a flash of everything sharpening briefly, it all disappeared. He was left in the cold, dark, with the rest of the world being nothing more than background noise that meant nothing to him.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

I glanced at the door, frowning. I'd passed by many sets of quarters before, and heard far more than my cursed processor would ever let me forget, but that sound was the most confusing. From what I knew, that bot was a loner of sorts. Was he hurt? Should I be worried? I was pretty certain I'd passed by all three of the femme triplets on my way indoors. Arcee was hanging around Bee with a cute little grin, Flare was picking shrapnel out of her right shoulder armor, and Chromia was helping the others clean up.

"I'd leave him alone, if I were you. He was staggering by earlier, lookin' pretty exhausted."

Hearing the voice, my eyes-err optics narrowed and I turned towards it. I _still_ hadn't forgiven him for bringing my sparkling to the scene of an attack. Especially considering we had no idea it was safe at the time. "Ironhide." My tone came out flat, and I couldn't be arsed to feel bad. I was annoyed. I'd forgive him...in time. For now, I was annoyed.

"Bella." He raised an optic ridge, frowning. "Don't tell me you are still irritated with me."

I bared my dental plates at him ferally in a mock grin. "Let's put it this way, hon. Recharge with one optic open from now on." I began past him, moving so that I didn't run into him in the all too narrow halls. "After all, we wouldn't want you to wake up painted hot pink with feather boas wrapped around your neck and your vocals rewired to sound like a flamoyantly gay redneck."

"You're bluffing"

Looking over my shoulder, I raised an eyebrow and slanted a look at him. "Have you _met_ me? I. Don't. Bluff."

The smirk that had formed on his facial plates quickly disappeared, and he actually stepped back, almost nervously. He still stood tall, stubbornly refusing to answer me, but I could tell I'd made him nervous. That made _me_ smirk. I'd come a long way from the femme that would have backed down in the face of his annoyance. I guess, now that I knew he wouldn't actually hurt me, I was letting go of a few of the limitations that held me back before. That made me far more dangerous in a rather...evil, pranking way.

"That's our femme."

I turned and looked over my shoulder, even as warm arms surrounded me, pulling me back against a rather...sharp, hard metallic chest. Pausing a moment, I raised an eyebrow. "Hey, Sides? When was the last time you saw your feet?" No matter what form he took, he seemed to love the portruding chest features, and I was only just now remembering my earlier plans of torturing him about it.

"Huh?" I felt him pull away and saw Sunstreaker frowning in confusion from my peripheral.

"Oh, nothing really. It's just that you two seem to have a thing for chests that would make Dolly Parton jealous." I pulled away, turning to watch as they evidently googled the terms, and still shot each other confused looks. "You know, big racks?" I held my hands out in front of my chest, in an almost crude gesture, before looking down and pouting at my own significantly smaller chest. "Jeez, I'm actually jealous!" After all, what girl wanted a smaller rack than her boyfriend?

Will happened to be walking over to Ironhide as I spoke that, and glanced up, before cracking up laughing. "You're..." He trailed off and shook his head, before sighing exhaustedly.

I took a good look at his face, and all joking faded. He had rings under his eyes, and his face was pale with splotches on his cheeks. He looked sick, but somehow I had a feeling it wasn't as simple as that. "You okay?"

He hesitated, before nodding, and I knew that for the bad sign it was. Things weren't okay. And it wasn't the attack. Okay, people were freaked about that, so maybe it was partly about that. And it wasn't about the little bot that had suddenly become an adoptive child to his family, because of it taking to Will, himself. He'd long since adapted to that, and as overwhelmed as he admitted to being about it, he found it kind of neat, and Sarah was more than willing to take in the little one. The mother to the end.

But I could still guess at what that look was about, and with a turn and a peck on the lips of each of my mates, I transformed, grabbing Will by the elbow and beginning dragging him off.

"Hey! Wait, I needed to give 'Hide a message!" The soldier struggled against me, but only ended up stumbling along behind me. A scene that put more than one soldier in hysterics. "I'm still your boss, you know!" He snarled at them as he stumbled behind me.

"Good thing you're not mine." I chirped as the soldiers quickly clammed up and moved on. "I highly suggest yelling your message to 'Hide, 'cause we gotta talk." I was dragging him toward a corner.

"Huh? Oh, yeah! Hey, 'Hide! Ratchet wanted you to find and tell Boomer to come see him! Something about concerns with his contact with the creature or something!" He stumbled and turned, before catching his balance. "Okay, okay! Message delivered. You can stop pulling me away now."

With a slight laugh, I let go of his arm, and he stumbled again, before he relaxed and began walking. "Okay, now tell me what's really up."

"What do you mean?" His eyes darted down the hall, watching as soldiers hefted bags with parts of Ramjet that Wheeljack had asked to experiment on.

"Well, by the way you're clearly avoiding the question..." I trailed off pointedly as he paused, glancing at me with a grimace. "What is it?" He still hesitated, and I sighed again. "Look, Will, I haven't had a chance to get to know you personally, but I see you as a friend. I see all you guys as friends, and I want to help. Even if it's just listening..."

He seemed to think before he turned and nodded, leaning against the wall. One more glance and I realized the bots and humans had cleared out. Now that it had calmed down, the soldiers more or less returned to their rooms. The business last night had almost everyone exhausted, so they were given the day off to sleep in, once the clean up was finished. We'd managed to make it around the corner from the other bots. Will seemed to think, before gesturing for me to follow and heading to the cafeteria, which was surprisingly close by.

He grabbed a cup of coffee, though he honestly looked like he didn't need it, and I grabbed a small cup of energon, following him to a table on the far side of the room, well away from the others.

"It's Sarah." He huffed, sitting down heavily.

Somehow I wasn't surprised. "A lot of people are having issues with this whole living on th base thing. It's stressing everyone else. Sam and Mikeala are having issues, just because Mikeala feels trapped. I don't really know how Ron and Judy are doing."

"Sarah... Sarah's had enough." Will's eyes were a little watery and he looked ready to break. "She says it's too dangerous for Annabelle, and a base is no place to live. I don't... I mean, I agree with her. I don't want my little girl around all this, but I don't know what else to do. If I leave them at the farm, they could be targeted."

"Well, they're gonna start the villa soon." I didn't really care anymore if he knew or not. Right now, it sounded like he could use all the hope he could get.

He shook his head. "I suggested that, too." I guess I looked surprised, because he glanced up and sighed again, before leaning heavily on the table. "Prime told me because he wanted me to set something up with Keller and a team of humans. That's all kinda on hold at the moment, but my point is... It's not going well. Sarah doesn't care. It's still on the island, isolated from the rest of the world. It's still close to a base where the 'Cons evidently know where we are. There's no school. No mall. No parks." He shook his head once more. "I... I'm not even hurt. I mean, I feel like someone's punched a hole through my chest." He laughed shakily. "But I understand. She's patient and caring, but this is destroying her."

Destroying her...

I hadn't spent much time around her, either, so I had no personal idea how this was effecting her, but apparently it was bad enough. She'd 'had enough'? I knew she loved him. I'd read it, and I'd seen it in person. If she'd really 'had enough', things had to be worse than they seemed. Especially if it was 'destroying her'.

"And you." I was frowning, feeling my own chest clench in terror when I realized Sam and Mikeala weren't the only ones suffering. I mean, Rika and Jesse seemed okay with it, but then again, they didn't have huge families left behind, who'd be asking tons of questions. Rika couldn't just go shopping whenever she wanted, but she was so keyed up about being around real live alien beings, and a guy she was clearly starting to like, that it didn't really bother her.

At least, for the moment.

Mikeala was isolated from her dad, her friends, her shop. Her life. She felt trapped, and she couldn't help but blame Sam or herself for it, and it was hurting them. Not to mention, Sam was starting to feel the pressure. He was starting to think about schooling and the future, and with the tension around the others, he'd been retreating to Bumblebee and the far side of the island whenever he could. Clearly, neither of them had cemented the 'I love you' thing, yet.

Like I'd already stated, I had no idea how Sam's parents were doing.

But honestly? I'd never even thought about Will and Sarah. I guess I'd always figured their love would withstand it all. Now, hearing his issues, I realized I should have known better. They were human after all, complete with insecurities and fears.

"Knowing they're in danger, it's hurting you, too." It wasn't a question. I'd _seen_ just how much his family meant to him. He could _say_ this didn't hurt him until he was blue in the face. I knew otherwise.

There was no hesitation this time. "Yeah. I should probably protest it more, but if it makes her happy... And it'll keep Anna safe, so that's a plus..."

Now my frown deepened. "Protest what?" Why did I suddenly get a feeling this was worse than I thought?

He sighed, sipping his coffee with a grimace. "Sarah...she's considering divorce."

_Divorce?_ I blinked, the shock making the word bounce around in my head a few times, before it settled in. _DIVORCE?_ Sarah and Will?

"What?" I barely remembered to keep my voice down. She was actually considering _divorce_? _Oh my God, things are worse than I thought!_ "That's not gonna help!" He shot me a sharp look, and I narrowed my eyes at him. "Do you think divorce is gonna make the Decepticons suddenly see her as less of an asset? Okay, I get it, she wants to go home, but this is a little drastic. I mean, d-" The word actually hurt me. Divorce? Really? Was it _that_ bad? "Divorce isn't helping."

She loved him. I wasn't psychic, but I _knew_ she loved him. I mean, all the books and stories said so. The movies hinted at it. I was as confident of that, as...well...knowing _my_ twins loved_ me._ If she loved him so much, this couldn't have been suggested lightly. Maybe it _was_ destroying her, in more than one way. But if she suggested it, she really _had_, had enough!

Still, deep down in my heart, something screamed she couldn't have meant it. Maybe it was just a word that bounced off her lips, possibly changing things forever, but she couldn't have _meant_ it. She was a smart woman. She knew it wouldn't change how they felt for each other, or how the Decepticons saw her.

So why suggest it? Was she _that_ desperate to get off the island?

Will cast his eyes to the table. "She's here because of me."

"And ending the marriage isn't going to change the fact that you guys love each other! Or the fact you have a biological daughter with her!" I hissed, verbalizing my thoughts, my hands clenching around the cup of energon until I could feel it denting under the grip. "It's only going to cause unnecessary pain! I mean, I know this is hard on everyone, but these things take _time_!"

"How much?" He hissed back, suddenly getting angry. "How much time? How many times do I have to fight, knowing my _wife_ and _daughter_ are in the next room, and could be crushed like bugs in an instant?"

"How many times do _I _have to fight?" I countered, feeling my heart pumping angrily. "Knowing the sparkling I adopted is in the next room, and could be stepped on and crushed like a bug? How many times do _I _have to fight, knowing my best friend and the sister I never had, is in the next room, helpless? I know how you feel Will, but this isn't the answer."

"What am I supposed to do?" The anger was still there, but now it was tinged with desperation. "If I fight, that's selfish. I can fight to keep them here, against their will, unhappy and miserable and in danger."

"That's it, isn't it?" I suddenly thought about it all and straightened, the answer hitting me instantly. "All this tension, this irrational decision, it's all because we're crammed together in one base. This didn't happen in the second movie, I'm sure of it!" There hadn't even been a passing mention, or a past mention. Nothing to indicate it happened at all. "And as far as I know, things were fine." Excluding Sam and Mikeala's tension, but that worked out.

"So we can send them home?" He was still frowning, but it was like half his own tension just melted. "But that's not going to fix everything. Sarah's freaking out. She needs-"

"A vacation." I nodded, feeling like I was on a roll. "She need a night off to herself, a girl's night out. I'm sure Optimus will let you go home to take care of Annabelle for the night, and with Ironhide there, you'll be protected. There's been no other sign of Decepticon activity, and Starscream's stupid, but hardly a moron. He's not going to attack again so soon. Besides, he's after the shards, and they're not on the base, they're on a living being that can move and hide and fight."

In fact, Optimus and Jazz had split them between them, so if they lost one, they still had others.

"So?"

There was no denying I had his sudden and full attention. Will's anger and pain seemed temporarily forgotten as I spoke, a new spark of hope shining in his eyes.

"So?" I gave him a look. "What _is_ Sarah, Will?"

He frowned, confused. "My wife?"

The question in his voice was a little bit funny, but I struggled to remain serious. "And a mother, and a _woman_. Treat her like one. Now that we have a lull, and after such a creepy event, go out and take her out. Take her out to dinner, or volunteer to take care of Annabelle and let her have a night off. Or better yet, take her out to dinner, and _then_ tell her you're taking your daughter for the night, and she'll go out with the girls."

He blinked, before breaking out into an exhausted but powerful smile. "That's brilliant! And 'Hide can act like a chaperone, keeping us safe at dinner, and you can keep her safe at, well, where ever you guys go out while 'Hide keeps Anna and me safe. There won't be any danger."

"And there won't be any danger to her staying home after, because the 'Cons are after the shards, not the humans." I couldn't shake the feeling the Cybertronians were in the most danger right now, thanks to those...those..._things_. "In fact, all the girls can go home. Mikeala, Rika, Judy, Sarah... Things can go back to normal on the base, and the civilians will be able to relax."

I stubbornly refused to question whether Rika would leave or not. I had a feeling she'd prefer to stay, unless we sent Jesse home, too. And that would actually work in our favor, because we'd have an ally in the local police force, if we ever needed. The changes in the storyline didn't bother me, because as I'd already stated, those things wanted bots. Humans didn't seem to mean _anything_ to them.

"It won't fix everything." He repeated, looking suddenly defeated. "This is bringing out...the worst in us all."

"No, it's the tension bringing out the worst in everyone." I stared at my energon, the cup almost irreperably damaged. "It's these attacks, and not having the answers to what's coming next." _Damn it, why won't you answer me?_ I thought angrily, feeling helpless. _First Prime..._ "But...it's a step. It'll help start. You can't get a divorce, you guys love each other too much."

Now Will laughed. "I know. Sarah and Anna are my world. I don't know what I'd do without them, but I want them happy." His eyes crinkled a little as he seemed to think. "What kind of life will they have, always worrying about me? Or worrying about their own safety, for that matter?"

"It won't always be that bad. One day the Decepticons will be beaten. The war will end, and we'll know...relative peace." I couldn't just come out and say 'peace' because with humans starting war over what now seemed like stupid reasons, I doubted peace would ever last. "Besides, Sarah married you in the first place, right?" I looked up at him again. "She loved you in the first place, right? You were a soldier before, and she loved you and was happy."

He nodded, a smile teasing the corner of his lips.

"Don't give up."

His eyes shot to me, darkening, before he blinked and straightened as well, nodding. "You're right. I didn't wanna fight, because I wanted them safe, but that's just giving up. I can't just give up on them. I won't." Then, he abruptly nodded.

His logic sounded flawed to my ears, with the 'safe' comment. In the end, they were safer with him, than without, and I think he was starting to realize that.

I couldn't help but giggle a little. "Good. _That's_ the Major pain in the ass we all know." I grinned at him when he shot me a dry look, before actually laughing. The relief was palpable. The fact Sarah had even brought up the subject of divorce worried me, but I could understand her mindset. She probably felt trapped. I'd have to talk to her, and the sooner the better. "Come on, you need sleep." I chugged my energon, before grabbing his still almost full coffee, and pulling it out of his reach. "Before you turn into a zombie yourself."

He shuddered. "I don't need a reminder, thanks." He grimaced a little, before standing and running a hand through his short hair. "Hey, Bella?" I looked at him, and he smiled. "Thanks. I needed that."

I smiled back, before dumping his coffee in the trash, watching as expression turned to one of horror. "You're more than welcome. Now _go_. Get some sleep. Make plans with your wife. I'll clear it."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Optimus was unsurprisingly sympathetic. He, too, agreed that since one Decepticon had found the base and undoubtedly sent the images and coordinates back to their base before he could be stopped, Diego Garcia was no longer safe for the civilians. Also, it appeared there was no interest in the humans in particular. Just the shards. It made sense, considering the considerable pressure the humans were under, not only to take two -and no more than two, as was Keller's specific orders- days off to try and relax, before things got explosive._

_Sarah seemed more than mollified by the decision, and when I spoke to her, admitted she acted more harshly than she intended. She never planned to divorce him, it was just something she spat out in the heat of the moment. I knew it'd take a while before the lingering effects of that one little word would wear off. And there would be lingering effects. They were, after all, human. I wasn't, anymore, and even _I_ knew you didn't just spit out a word like that without repercussions. Luckily, I think I managed to avoid a disaster there._

_Mikeala seemed a little shocked by the idea. Overjoyed, but shocked. I guess the idea of being sent home never really crossed her mind. Did it really seem _that_ long to them? It felt...short to me._

_Anyways, I told Prime about the need to calm down and get out, and he wasn't all for it, but he wasn't against it, either. He decided, since the Decepticons now clearly knew where the base was, to move said base. We'd split up for now, until Keller could make new arrangements, each going under cover in different cities. No one would go far, but for now, it seemed best to...more or less...go underground._

_At least that was the theory..._

_I, because of my abilities, would be allowed to live as a 'normal human'. No job, or eating out, or anything like that, and I'd have my constant visitors. Two mysterious, sexy sports cars were to watch over me, closely. They'd also be caring for Sunfire. Mikeala had Jolt as a guardian. Having her driving a small Chevy Volt made more sense than some exotic car anyways, and she'd quickly learned not to like the minor twins, thanks to...well...experience. Sam had Bee. Optimus would be a bus, making rounds (Yay! Maybe I'd spot the kinky grandmothers again!). Ironhide would watch over the Lennox's._

_And communications were to be kept on internal communications, for the sake of keeping our plan on the down low._

_Now, to figure out what to do with the former 'Cons._

_And why Boomer's been quieter than usual. And avoiding his own charge, Mr. Jesse Foster._

_Why do I have a really bad feeling?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Jan 19, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	83. Creepy

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : "Stumpy" was actually derived from a PM conversation with **Anasazi Darkmoon**, though we were actually talking 'Mr. Stubbles' and in a different context. Hey, it works!

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_You know how you're always told to trust you instincts? Wanna know if you can trust someone you just meet? Trust your instincts. Are you lost? Trust your instincts. We're always taught to listen to and trust what's deep down inside us. So why is it we almost always ignore it? Was I really the only one who kept feeling like we were on the brink of something big? Something big and not necessarily good?_

_The twins seemed perky, as usual. And by perky, I mean Sides is cocky and Sunny's glowering at the humans again. Optimus is his normal self, calm and quiet, but obviously distracted. Barricade gives dirty looks to anyone who looked at him wrong, still having issues with most of the humans, and isn't above whacking them in the ass with his doors, if they dare touch him. He got along fairly well with Jesse, at times, though. The only human he actually let inside him, but for Rika, who'd just threaten to unhinge his doors in recharge._

_My point is, most of the bots, though seeming on edge at times, seemed like nothing was bothering them. Ratchet and Wheeljack were nowhere to be seen, apparently too engrossed with Ramjet's remains to be part of the group splitting up. A couple of the bots remained behind to make sure they had protection and assistance, but otherwise, there was no visual lingering effects._

_No one spoke about it. No one showed any signs of even remembering it happened._

_And that didn't set well with me. They should have been putting more thought into it, or maybe I should have been putting less. All I know was, _I_ couldn't just forget it. My instincts screamed at me not to just forget it, or let my guard down. Was I spending too much time around Ironhide? Quite possibly, but that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Not in this case._

_I couldn't forget it. I couldn't just put it aside like it never happened. Not when I felt like something big was _still_ coming._

_But all of that aside, I needed to just..._

_Figure out why the hell Boomer kept staring at me when he thought no one was looking._

_What? Was my spark chamber hanging out?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**(A Few Days Later)**

I still couldn't believe things had moved so fast. One minute I'm giving Will relationship advice, and yes, now that it's over, I'm in complete 'Wtf' mode. As in, what the frag? I wasn't an expert on relationships in the least. Look at how long it took to finally overcome my self-consciousness and sparkmate with my mates. Mate_s_! But there I was, telling him how to help save his marriage -though I don't think I ever really believed it'd actually _come_ to divorce- and the next, we were loading up the C-17s that would take us to our individual places.

Back to what used to be my home, for me. It'd be weird. It was hard to believe that not _that_ long ago, I wanted to go home so badly. Now that I was more or less forced to go home, I didn't really want to. It felt odd.

I had no idea what Sam and Mikeala were going to do, but I'd overhead 'school' more than once. Will and Sarah were going home, and tonight was our girl's night out. Judy and Ron were going home, and had actually asked that Ravage stay with them. I guess his calm, quiet catiness had gotten to them in a good way. That and magnetic bling seemed to be a lot cheaper and apparently was fun to play around with.

I'm...not going there.

Bling on Ravage...

Yeah, I'm not going there.

Looking out the window, I sighed a little, before settling back into the cushioned seats a little more.

"Are you well?"

The voice startled me, and I looked at the dash board in front of me. "Huh? Oh, yeah." I felt the burning in my head, that signalled a constant stare, and found myself staring at the Mazda again. There was no mistaking _who_ was staring at me. "Hey, have you noticed anything odd about Boomer lately? He keeps staring at me."

"I believe many of the bots are a little worried about why Ramjet went after you with such intensity. Ratchet believes it's because you were transformed with the Allspark shard. You still have the residual energy signature, and the creature controlling him seemed drawn to that. Wheeljack believes it may be because the creature seems to feed on energy. There's no way to be certain, now that it has offlined, but it is the belief."

And Ratchet had apparently checked out Boomer, hadn't he? Didn't that count for something?

"So...he's been staring at me because he's worried? Does he have to be totally creepy about it?" I made a face, before sitting down lower, almost trying to snuggle into the warm seats. Who knew that the leader of the Autobots was so comfy?

"If he is bothering you, you can always ask him to stop. Or I can ask him for you, if you would prefer."

"Aww, thanks, Optimus. You're such a good big brother." I cooed, before snorting. "A really, _really_ big brother." I giggled, feeling the truck vibrate a little as he too laughed. "Sorry, but I can't help the fact you're a walking, talking skyscraper."

"Hm, yet it is not my fault you are tiny."

"I'm not _that_ small!" I gently kicked the underside of the dash before me, making another face.

He chuckled again, before falling silent a moment more. "Is there a reason you wished to ride with me?"

Smirking briefly, I glanced to the Ferrari and Corvette parked next to each other. The red and yellow colors suited each other nicely, and I would _never_ get tired of seeing both of those gorgeous vehicles. I still stand by my decision that Corvettes and Ferraris were some of the sexiest vehicles out there.

"They've got the kids." I snorted, trying not to fall off the seat laughing when I recalled how they'd more or less drawn the short string on that one. "Wheelie's been bitching non-stop about being stuck with Stumpy-" I giggled hysterically, though feeling bad, about Rika's nickname for the one-legged sparkling that used to be a metal detector. All though, Hoppy just wasn't much better. "And Sunfire keeps falling asleep on him. I didn't want to deal with them bitching about his bitching."

Optimus was silent for a moment, before venting. "I feel sorry for that poor mech you keep calling Stumpy." He remarked, almost off hand.

I snorted painfully, before cracking up into laughter. "Just wait, we'll get you calling him that before long, too!" The mental image was so wrong, I couldn't help but laugh. The great and formal Optimus Prime calling a one-legged sparkling 'Stumpy'? Yeah, that was giggle-worthy.

He chuckled again before falling silent, and it didn't take a rocket scientist to know something was on his mind as well.

"Optimus?"

He vented, a much quieter sound. "Ratchet examined Boomer and found nothing out of the ordinary, besides trace energies the creature left behind when it attacked him, however, I cannot help but feel something is amiss. He has been...far quieter than usual."

"You mean I'm not the only one?" I blinked, before cringing. "I thought I was being paranoid."

"You sense something is amiss, too?"

"Amiss? Well, yeah, that's one way to put it. I can't shake the feeling something is horribly wrong." I frowned, shuddering a little, before gripping the seatbelt. "I really hope your underground idea helps. As for Boomer, he's probably just as shaken by this as the rest of us. I mean, Ramjet was all about getting to me, so he's probably kinda freaked out.

"I hope not. The last thing I need is for my bots to be 'freaked out'."

I laughed a little, uncomfortably.

"What about the First Prime? Has he spoken to you recently? I must admit, I am a little worried about your lack of updates."

"You're not the only one." I muttered, sobering immediately. "I tried to contact him, but he hasn't answered. Maybe he's done with me?" I hadn't really thought we'd ever stop talking. I mean, I guess I should have. If he was more or less a God, or a spirit on a mission, then he was a busy guy, and he kept making time out to talk to me.

So it should have made sense that one day he'd just stop. He had other things to attend to, and he helped me a lot already.

"Perhaps. If that is the case, we are on our own."

"Mhmm..." The idea didn't set well with me, admittedly. Feeling the burn in the side of my head again, I frowned. "Are we sure he's not infected, Optimus? We don't know _what_ that creature is capable of. For all we know, it can hide from Ratchet's scans. After all, it's sentient, right? So it'd know a threat."

"So we believe. You are right. We don't know what to expect. Considering your request to allow Jesse Foster to rejoin the local task force, and his own admission to missing his work there, I have decided to reassign him a guardian. From this moment on, Barricade will be his guardian."

"His form as a cruiser?" Barricade hated humans bad enough, I didn't see a valid reason to do it, other than that, and Optimus quietly confirmed the thought. "It makes sense, but can 'Cade handle it?"

"I, ahh...haven't told him yet. I was considering it, but your own concerns over Boomer have only solidified my decision."

"Wait, your taking his charge from him because of me?"

"No, Bella." With a flash, human Optimus was there, staring at me with a gentle smile. "I am doing so because I was concerned about him to begin with. Your own concerns have only helped me to realize I am not being...as the humans would put it, paranoid."

"Oh." I blinked. Then I frowned. "Wait, when are you gonna tell him?"

"I thought it would be best if _you_ told him." He gave me a small, apologetic smile. "Forgive me, but he's made his disdain of Autobots well known. They deal with us, but I thought the news would be less of a shock coming from you."

Raising an eyebrow, I snorted at the thought. "You you're saying me telling him 'Optimus has assigned you to watch over an organic human' would be less shocking than _you_ saying it?" He seemed to think about it a moment, and I sighed, shaking my head. "I guess you're right. I'm not sure why he sees me like a sister. He once told me I looked like she would have looked, if she'd made it to adulthood, but it's just all confusing. It all happened so fast." Then again, I saw him as a dear friend. Given time, I'm sure I'd come to see him as the big brother I was already seeing Prime as.

Maybe, something about me just made that connection to Barricade even faster than I was making with him. I had no idea what it was, but knowing he cared, sincerely, was heart warming.

He nodded, silently.

"Alright." I straightened, unstrapping the seatbelt and tapping on the door. "Better let me out. The sooner I get this over with, the better."

"Eager to face the shooting squad, are we?"

"Firing squad, Optimus, and yeah, I guess so. I also need to check on my mates." Frowning a little, my eyebrows drew down. "They've dampened our bond." Which felt weird. It was like throwing a heavy, wet blanket over my link to them, making them seem more distant than they were. It wasn't painful or anything, but it was definitely troubling.

Optimus chuckled slightly, however. "They are probably protecting you from their annoyance. They are currently whining to me about having to deal with Wheelie and the sparklings all at the same time."

I could have been put off, or hurt, but hearing Optimus' explanation, I was more touched. They had dampened their bonds so their annoyance didn't leak through to me. "Thanks, Optimus." Patting the dash board, I slid out the open door and to the floor, before walking across it. I waved at Will, who smiled hugely next to his obviously happier wife, as I crossed the interior of the C-17.

Passing the Corvette, I leaned down and dragged my finger tips across the hood, hearing the engine rev and feeling the slightest nudge back. I smiled and did the same to the Ferrari, feeling as the dampening on their bonds lifted ever so slightly, and I could feel their love.

It was still so new to me. I could _feel_ their love for me, and any possible lingering doubts I ever had washed away under the power of it all. I actually felt stupid for letting Starscream get to me with _words,_ but pushed that aside when I felt the love increasing, growing more forceful.

Tentatively, I tried the whole internal speaking thing, still learning the ropes on that. I switched to the private link, or at least what I _hoped_ was the private link, and smiled as I crossed to the Saleen. _**"I love you two, too."**_ I sent, before focusing on the present.

Tapping on the Saleen's hood, I walked over to the driver side door, and climbed in once Barricade opened it for me.

"S-S-Sister Bella." Frenzy nodded at me, little legs trembling against the seat he sat on.

"Hey Frenzy." I waited until the door shut, and abruptly smirked. "Guess who just got stuck with human babysitting duty?"

"Soundwave?" Came the droll reply.

"Nope."

"Blackout?"

"Nope."

There was silence, and I could almost _feel_ the dread practically oozing over the suddenly all too still form of the cruiser, before he snapped. "I don't know, and I don't bloody well care!" Came the growl of annoyance. "What do you want with me, femme?"

Raising an eyebrow, I shrugged. "I just thought I'd give you the heads up. You've been assigned to be Jesse Foster's guardian, for the time being."

_"WHAT?"_

I winced at the volume, covering my ears, and listened for a moment as several of the other bots present growled and whined about him disturbing them.

"Keep it down, 'Con! Some of us are trying to relax."

"'Trying' being the key word."

"Some of us are trying to slaggin' recharge."

"Ask me if I care!" He shouted back, before lowering his voice. "Now _why_ have I suddenly been assigned to watch over a _human_? What did I do to piss off Prime?"

"'Cade, if you pissed off Prime, you'd be walking around faceless." I murmured, shaking my head. I knew his comms would be muted, just because he wouldn't want half the base to know he was now a guardian. Even more so, he wouldn't want the other former _'Cons_ to know. "Just between you and me, Optimus and I are both a little worried about Boomer. He's been acting strangely since the battle, and I guess Optimus doesn't feel comfortable leaving him in charge of a human."

"I haven't noticed anything." Barricade groused, even as Frenzy leaned up to see better over the dash board and looked out at the Mazda.

"He's been staring at me non-stop." I shuddered a little, beginning to feel a little creeped out by it.

"I can gouge out his optics, if you think that'll help."

I rolled my eyes and laughed a little. "Thanks, 'Cade but that's not necessary. Prime thinks it's because he's worried about what'll happen when we're split up."

"I'm not sure your mates would take so kindly to another mech paying _that_ close attention to you."

"No, they probably wouldn't. I know I don't, but I can't blame him if he's worried. It'd be just like you, or anyone else watching me, because you're worried something's gonna happen. He's just being...creepy about it." I shook my head. "But anyways, other than the whole Boomer's-gone-stalkerish thing, I think Optimus chose you because of your alternate mode."

Barricade was silent a long moment.

I let my other eyebrow raise. "You _do_ remember Jesse's occupation, before he was taken to the Autobots...?"

"Don't be absurd. He was a member of the local police force, hunting down criminals and protecting innocents, and all that slag."

"Yeah, and all that slag..." I made a face. "Anyways, because you're a cruiser, you're the perfect guardian."

"...I just _had_ to chose a police cruiser..." He growled. "Obviously, I don't get a say."

"Is it really _that_ bad? I mean it's not like he's gonna eat chips and beer in your interior and make a huge mess, or be a huge pain in the aft. Of all the humans you could have been assigned-"

"Why did I have to be assigned a human at all?"

"Because humans are our allies, and these creepy zombified Decepticons are out there, posing God only knows what kind of threat to them." I shuddered a little, leaning into the seats. "They might not be directly in danger at this particular moment, but they could be attacked at any time. They know where the base is-"

"So do the Decepticons."

Sighing heavily, I shook my head. "Look, if you don't want the position, talk to Prime." I almost growled, starting to feel annoyed. "He's the one who assigned it, but it didn't sound like an order to me. He can just as easily get one of the others to change their alt. form and take on a cruiser for the position, too."

There was no answer, and I glanced to the now empty semi, certain Barricade was already in the process of telling Optimus where he could shove the assignment. Then, there was a sigh. "Fine. I don't like this, but it's better than dealing with Screamer's suicide missions. Besides, you're right, I guess. Out of all the humans I could have been assigned, that one isn't as bad."

"And at least he doesn't have a dog that likes peeing on Cybertronians." I put in, giggling as the car shuddered in disgust. "You're lucky you were the one he 'lubricated' on. I doubt Ironhide will ever let another dog near him."

There was a choke. "The mutt lubricated on bolts for brains? And it's still _functional_?"

"Well, I don't know how 'functional' it is. It _did_ lubricate on Ironhide's foot, so it's gotta be glitching in the head, but otherwise... Yeah, it's still alive. Oh! How's Ravage doing with the bling?" I giggled, trying to imagine him done up as some Gangsta kitty or something.

A metallic snort sounded. "Beginning to grow an ego that can rival that of your twins."

_My twins_... I blushed abruptly. _Wow, I'm living every fangirl's wildest wet dream! I've got the twins as mates. Optimus Prime as the best big brother ever. 'Cade's slowly getting closer and closer to the 'brother' status as well. And I've got the sweetest, best behaved sparkling ever. Once we end this war, everything will be...pretty close to perfect._

"So who's going to inform Jesse Foster and Boomer of the change in guardianship?"

The question shook me out of my thoughts, but the answers were immediate. "Optimus is taking Boomer." With the way he'd been staring at me, I wasn't about to touch that one with a two-hundred-and-ten foot pole! "I guess I'll talk to Jesse, when we land."

"Hm, slagging right you are, femme. I never asked for this."

Patting his dash board, I rolled my eyes. "Poor 'Cade. Try not to melt from your interaction with him, and you _might_ survive." I put in sarcastically, before hopping out of the car. "Oh, and I wouldn't squish him if I were you. You'd only end up with his entrails decorating your pretty paint job."

Even as he shuddered again, I grinned and closed the door, waving at Frenzy before heading over to where Jesse was sitting in Ironhide, with Will.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I guess I wasn't the only one who noticed Boomer's unusual behavior. Jesse prefered to be with Ironhide and Will, feeling unusually creeped out around the mech. Apparently he used to talk to the human, at least, but not any more. Now, it was like he ignored his own charge. Like Jesse didn't exist to him._

_I wouldn't be surprised if he wasn't the least bit bothered, when Prime told him he was relieved of his guardianship duties. _

_Jesse was a little put off, but once I told him he'd have his very own sentient cruiser, seemed to get over it quickly. Well, for the most part. What is it about grown men acting like children at times like this? Then again, what am I saying? I'd do the same damn thing, in his place._

_Hell, I probably _would_ be doing it, when I got home. Showing off my sexy, mysterious visitors again and again, making sure _everyone_ saw the most beautiful vehicles -and holos!- in the world. _

_Yeah, I could understand Jesse's state of mind. I'm sure he still cared about Boomer in the back of his mind. From what I knew about him, he was just that kind of person. _

_Anyways, I sincerely hope Boomer finds himself a place outside of town to set up. I really don't want to deal with a literal stalker. Again. And I hope he stops staring at me soon, before I give in to the urge to take Barricade up on his offer._

_Seriously. It's creepy!_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Feb 1, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	84. The Dream and The Game

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note**: Sorry about the late update (I'm saying that a lot, recently, aren't I?), but last week was all appointments, all over, and working on the farm, and yesterday I was abducted for my birthday, by my family. XD So here's the latest chapter! :D Enjoy!

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Home is where the heart is. Never have I ever been more convinced than now. Even as I step through my front door, staring at the place I used to reside at, all I see is...a stranger's home. The place is familiar, but has long since lost that 'comfortable' feeling. Now it's just a house._

_I guess, if I had to go undercover, there were worse places to go. On the upside, I still had contact with the bots. It helps a lot, because whenever I find myself sitting on my computer, looking in vain for new updates, and feeling suddenly like questioning whether it all really happened... All I have to do is look out the window._

_Whenever that weasley little rational side to my mind decides to once again pipe in with almost non-existent 'it never happened's, all I have to do is pull aside my curtains, and lock eyes on the Corvette and Ferrari sitting outside._

_Even if their human holoforms aren't always active, just having them out there makes me feel better._

_And it's even more comforting to know that without their human holoforms active, they can pay closer attention to Sunfire, sitting in Sunstreaker's hold, recharging the night away._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(The Next Day)**

I guess the good thing about recharge was as soon as you set yourself to sleep, no amount of being in a now strange bed, or alone, could stop you. That's not to say I slept well. I woke up multiple times, first panicking at where I was, only to be reassured through my bond to the twins that it was real. Still, I couldn't help but sit up and peek out the window next to my bed, needing to see the mechs were there.

I'd insisted they recharge at night without their holoforms active, after an explanation from an all too talkative Wheeljack informed me that it was draining on their systems to keep the holoforms going. It took me mentioning they couldn't protect me or Sunfire if they were more or less recharging on their feet for them to agree, and I was regretting it.

After checking on them for what felt like the hundredth time, and feeling the tinge of annoyance to Sunstreaker's end of the reassuring bond, I settled down, and forced myself back into recharge. Just like they'd be no good to me dead on their feet, I also knew that applied to me. I guess I just couldn't get used to sleeping in my old bed, after so long away from it.

As the darkness surrounded me, I sighed a little, praying this would be the last time I woke up in the middle of the night.

**Dream**

It felt like I'd only just closed my eyes, when they shot open again. I was still in my bedroom, in my apartment, but something felt horribly wrong. It was a long moment before I could place it as something missing. Like...my bond to the twins. I felt my eyes widen with horror. This wasn't dampened. This was _gone_.

Shooting up in my bed, I barely had time to note it was still dark out, before I turned and nearly ripped my curtains off the wall shoving them out of my way. Then I felt like my heart froze, and I was suddenly cold as ice. "No..." Shaking my head, I felt a building feeling of dread as I stared out at the parking lot. _Sunstreaker? Sideswipe? Sunfire?_

My eyes filled with tears. This was...perhaps my biggest fear, lately. Well, next to the slimy worm-things that were taking over the Decepticons.

There was no red Corvette, or yellow Ferrari.

In fact, the parking lot was more or less full of the usual cars. I stared at them all, trying to figure out what was happening. Then, fast as lightning, I turned and grabbed the cell phone by my bed. It was Sunny's, his personal gift to me, I guess. Only, when I grabbed it, it wasn't the same phone.

My old cell phone stared back at me, the tiny scrapes and scratches from years of use the first thing I noticed. I held the cold phone in my hand, breathing heavily. "No." Regardless of what I was staring at, I flipped the phone open and dialed the first number that came to mind. _This isn't happening!_ The phone didn't even ring. It beeped, and a voice came over the line telling me the number I'd dialed was not in service.

"How the _hell_ does an Autobot's internal communications go out of service?" The number I'd dialed was a special code to hack into a line within Optimus Prime's processor. Or at least, that's what he'd told me, and I _knew_ he wouldn't lie to me about that. _After all, it's not like it matters if they drive too far from a radio tower._ Feeling my heart pounding in terror, I hung up and dialed the number I knew wouldn't be out of service.

It rang three times before a groggy voice answered. "RIKA!" The silence on the other end had me nearly hyperventilating. "What's going on? I woke up and the twins aren't outside! And I can't feel them! And Sunny's cell is gone!" I was up and out of my bed, pacing as I struggled to figure this out. "Was there an attack? Is everyone okay?"

"WHOA! Wait a minute! Bella? Is that-No, dumb question. What the hell are you talking about?" Well, at least she sounded more awake now.

"The twins! They're not here! And I can't sense them!"

"Who... Who are the twins? And what do you mean you can't 'sense' them? Bells, you're not making any sense. Oh, wait, was it a bad dream?" There was a sigh. "It's the middle of the night. It was just a dream."

"NO! It's not!" I looked around my apartment, feeling more and more terrified as I spied my old Transformers merchandise where I used to keep it. Some of it was even gathering dust, showing I hadn't touched it in a long time. _This isn't possible..._ "It's not a _dream_! It wasn't a dream..." I sank down slowly on my couch, denying it whole heartedly, before jumping up again. "What about the abduction? The attacks? You and Jesse?"

"Huh? Me and _who_?"

Shaking my head, I walked into the kitchen and turned on the faucet, before grabbing a glass and filling it with water. I stared at my hand, shaking, but as I tried to lift the glass to my lips, it slipped from my grasp. I barely had time to gasp, before it smacked against the edge of the sink and shattered, the glass tinkling as it rolled all over the place. "DAMN IT!" I breathed heavily, closing my eyes, trying to ignore the burn in them as I struggled to figure out what's going on. "_This_ is the dream." I murmured. _It's gotta be!_

"Bella, are you okay?" This time her voice was hesitant. "You're kinda scaring me."

"Imagine how _I _feel." I had a strange sense of deja vu. The last time I thought I was losing my mind, aliens became a reality. This time...they were turning back into fiction? No, that wasn't possible. Staring down at the broken shards of glass, I felt oddly numb. Empty. "I gotta go." I didn't wait for her answer, hanging up on her. _Wasn't there a time I would have given anything for this? To be normal? For it all to have been a dream? Rika obviously doesn't remember it. She should have recognized Jesse's name, if not Sunfire's._

I put the phone down, before slowly reaching for the glass. I began to gather it, not really thinking to be careful. After all, some part of my mind insisted I was Cybertronian. Glass wouldn't hurt me. Not human glass. I was too strong for that.

Then I cut myself.

"Ouch!" With a hiss, I pulled back, dropping the shards back in the sink as I stuck my finger in my mouth. It was just a natural response to suck on the injury, something I'd always do, since I was a little girl. Pulling my finger from my mouth, I paused, feeling like what was left of my heart was shattering with unbelievable pain.

Red.

Red _blood_.

Like...human blood.

I felt like I couldn't breathe. I stared at the little red droplet on my finger, not daring to believe my eyes. _Wasn't there a time I'd want this?_ I couldn't shake the feeling that if it really _all_ was a dream... Well, it kind of made sense to wake up right at the climactic battle, rather than the hopefully happy ending, but... I couldn't ignore the feeling that this was wrong. It was all too real to be a dream. My time with the Autobots, that is. There was just...too much.

"Is this what you wanted?"

I didn't even jump, but I could have cried with relief. Spinning to the source of the voice, I pinned him with a hurt stare, feeling the burn of tears in my eyes. "You didn't answer me when I called, and now you do _this_ to me? What did I do to piss you off?"

He stared at me with sympathetic eyes. "I'm not angry. You once wanted to go home. I'm giving you a taste of what it would be like, if you did. You cannot very well exist as a Cybertronian in your reality, nor can any of this have happened. Your friend Rika will never have met Jesse Foster. In fact, it would have been nothing more than a dream on your part."

I guess, in a twisted way, he was right. I _did_ once want to go home, but... "I haven't wanted to go home in a long time. My home is there, with them, now." I stared at him, holding my hand to my chest. "With the mechs I love and my sparkling." He smiled a little, and I frowned. "And they need me. Right now, they need all the help they can get."

His smile faded, and his ruby optics flashed. "You're more right than you can know. It is not only the Decepticons effected by the strange creatures. Not even _I_ know what they are, but I do know they find their way into a mech's body, and are able to take complete and total control over them."

"But if that's the case, the mech can break free."

He nodded solemnly. "Except they are blocked from the real world. They are unaware of what is happening, only a blessed reprieve from the pain. They are unaware of what they are doing, saying, or whom they are harming."

"So now that we've established I wanna stay here, can I?" He raised an optic ridge, looking around, and I made a face. "I meant in reality. With my mates, my sparkling, my friends, and their war."

"You are needed there, now." He nodded at me. "But there is one thing you must know. You can remain here. They are your new family, that world your new home. I believe the humans have a saying, 'Love conquers all'. There is nothing truer in the entire universe. Keep that in mind, when things seem the darkest." With a smile, he backed away, and I noticed that the world around us seemed to be melting. "Go home, and save the ones you love."

There was a bright flash, and a sudden feeling of falling.

**End Dream**

With a gasp, I woke up sharply, only to be held down by hands. I panicked and fought against them a moment, before an almost overwhelming feeling of fierce protectiveness hit me, from more than one source. I froze, suddenly feeling a thousand and one pounds lighter as I realized the bond was back.

"Slaggit, femme! You scared the pit out of us!"

I glanced up sharply and noted the almost painfully tight hold on my arms was curtesy of Sunstreaker. Without even hesitating, I reached up and grabbed his face, before pulling him down to me for the most searing kiss, quite possibly in the history of kisses. His cursing was cut off the moment my lips met his, and he immediately responded in kind.

It was meant to be more of a self-reassurance that he was there. Real. That I really was kissing him, but it quickly grew so heated, he was pressing me down into the bed, this time with the weight of his holographic body, and I was only too happy to wrap my legs around his waist, pulling him to me as tightly as I could. Having him there set my blood on fire, and I pulled him even closer to me.

I'm not sure which of us gave off the weak groan, I was a little more preoccupied with the feeling of his body, so very realistic, pressed against my own. Or more importantly, a part of his anatomy, that his real body didn't have, that was currently pressed into my inner thigh in a rather...perky way. Literally.

Breaking off the kiss, I stared at him blearily, seeing him breathing heavily. "Uh, where'd _that_ come from?" I gasped, shifting a little against his, err, _point_ for emphasis.

He blinked at me uncomprehendingly, before I moved. Then he groaned, his eyes closing a moment. "For the interest of experimenting with human mating. We've created our holographic forms as anatomically correct as possible. So, if you intend to continue talking, I must request you don't do that again." The look in his eyes made his point all too clear, and I felt my cheeks burning. "I could ask you the same thing about that kiss."

"I missed you." I answered simply.

His eyes opened, and I felt another hand on my face, turning to see Sideswipe dip his head down for a brief, much less heated kiss. "We never left. You were the one who left us."

As Sides pulled back, looking at me with a look only slightly less heated than Sunny's, I glanced at both twins. "Huh?"

"We sensed your distress, but were unable to comfort you, so we came in to see you only to find you asleep. However, we were unable to wake you." Sideswipe explained.

It took me a moment to process his words, more from the fact Sunstreaker was still laying on top of me, and I still had my legs around his waist, and he was currently in the process of suckling on my throat, and-Holy Primus, where'd he learn to do that? With a moan, I let my eyes fall shut, before they slammed open again, and I swatted at the yellow twin's shoulder. "Stop that! I'm trying to focus!"

His eyes narrowed at me as he pulled back. "You started it." He put in pouting petulantly.

"Real mature. That's what I like. My sparkmates acting more like sparklings than my own sparkling." I put in dryly, removing my legs from his waist and pushing him off me. "But what's this about not being able to wake me?"

"You simply seemed to be asleep, but kept growing more distressed. We attempted various techniques to wake you, and not one of them worked." Sideswipe sat beside me, as Sunstreaker leaned against the wall at the foot of my bed.

It was about then I realized several things. I was cold. I was wet. My head hurt at the base of my hair, and my cheek hurt. Frowning, I closed my eyes, instantly having a damn good idea who did what. "Who threw the water at me?"

"Sunstreaker."

"Hey! I was trying to wake her."

"Didn't have to be cold water. You could have drowned her."

"Oh, frag off-"

"Who slapped me?" I raised an eyebrow, masking my expression as I opened my eyes and eyed them both warily. When neither of them answered, and they exchanged looks, my eyes narrowed. "Well?"

Immediately, they both pointed at each other.

I snorted, causing them to look at me. "I know well enough to know Sideswipe wouldn't smack a femme to save his life. Unless of course she's a Decepticon witch intent on driving him batty." I wave off their looks. "Point is, slap me again, and I'll rewire you to fit a female holographic form, 'anatomically'." I warned Sunstreaker. Then I frowned. "I saw the First Prime." I looked to my finger immediately, remembering the blood, only to sigh with relief when I saw no sign of an injury.

"...The frag? You saw the First Prime, and you were distressed? What the slag did he do to you?" Sunstreaker was all but snarling.

Giving him a look, I sighed. "He was answering a question, by showing me one of two possibilities." I saw their looks and rolled my eyes. "When I first came here, I had moments when I wanted nothing more than to go home. I only just recently began to think about it in earnest. I was asking him...if I would be forced to go home after everything. He showed me what it would be like, if I did." They stared at me intensely, and I offered a small smile. "Needless to say I didn't like it. I told him I wanted to remain with you guys."

They exchanged smug looks, and I shook my head with exasperation.

"Yeah, yeah, let it go to your already over-inflated egos." Then my eyes widened as I remembered our conversation. "Guys, we might have a problem." I took a deep, shaky breath, and glanced at them both. "They said it wasn't just the Decepticon effected by the parasites. I had a bad feeling before, but now I'm really starting to worry."

"Do you think it means one of us...?" Sideswipe's eyes were wide. I think we all knew well enough that humans couldn't be so easily affected by those parasites. Not so...subtly, anyways. I'm sure a man walking around with a shirt slithering around on his body would stand out in a crowd. "But who?"

"Who came into contact with the creature? That seems to be how it spreads." Sunstreakers eyes were narrow, before they widened.

And I had the same idea at the same time they did. "Boomer..."

"We need to warn the others-"

"But we gotta be careful!" I protested, catching their attention. "Remember, this thing is sentient, and smart. If we stand a chance of freeing Boomer from it, we have to figure out how it works. And if we get too close, it could infect us, too." Almost out of a feeling of ever building paranoia, I glanced out the window. Seeing the forms of my mates in the parking lot, I sighed in relief. No sign of a blue Mazda.

"So what do we do?"

"He's after the shards. So he's probably gonna watch Optimus and Jazz for now." I mused. Getting an idea, I glanced up at the twins. "Wanna play a game?"

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_The idea of playing a game seemed surprisingly exciting to the twins. Or maybe it was the idea of trapping an organism that apparently thought it was smart. The three of us knew about it, because we got together and spoke about it, but as part of the game, they weren't allowed to let _anything_ slip over internal communications. In fact, I made them promise not to tell anyone about it._

_That's not to say _I_ wouldn't, however. The only way I could get them to agree was to promise to tell at least Optimus myself. I guess that worked perfectly, since I was planning to do so anyways. I just needed to make a plan for the next day, to get out, and hopefully come into 'random' contact with a few bots. 'Cade would be easy enough, but I prayed he wouldn't blow the 'game'. Optimus, too, would be easy enough._

_But how about Jazz? What reason would I have to see him?_

_Wait... What if..._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Ffeb 5, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	85. Chapter 85

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : OMG! Sorry guys! I've been kinda glued to my game, the farm, and my newest story idea (Not TF, sorry), and I let time get away with me. -_- Here's the next installment!I am HOPING to start updating a little faster, so I don't keep up these laggy updates. Sorry for the wait -_-

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_This was _not_ going to be easy. Sure, getting to Optimus was easy enough, but 'Cade and Jesse were on call in some undisclosed location, and I couldn't figure out a way to get the bots to hack into the net to get said location, without sounding suspicious. And for some reason 'I just wanted to visit' didn't seem like it would fly. Not to mention, Rika was out, visiting some of her 'normie' friends, hanging out._

_I couldn't get her to come with me, without her figuring _something_ was up, and I didn't want to deal with that can of worms just yet. Luckily, my plan of having the twins chase a 'suspected Decepticon' off somewhere didn't have to come into play. They overheard Jazz was paying Mikeala a visit, apparently needing a bit of a tuneup in his undercarriage._

_Oh, the jokes that came to mind._

_I guess the only thing that really made this difficult was...the damn Mazda I swear I keep seeing whenever I walk down the streets of Tranquility. Is he following me again?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Decepticon Base, Normal POV)**

_"Anything?" _Shockwave's head twitched as a small wailing groan sounded behind him. His optic flashed violet, but seemed dimmer then before. He eyed the bots before him, turning to Starscream. _"Mother is hungry."_

_"Nothing as of yet."_ Starscream droned emptily.

_"No sign the Autobots know about our spy."_ Another bot piped up, all the Decepticons standing in a long line.

_"The femme?"_

_"Suspicious. Must work harder to blend in. I believe we may have to get close to the fleshling the Autobot was protecting in order to do so."_

_"The Autobot was removed from guardianship duties."_

_"More suspicions. We must work to break those."_

_"We cannot have them suspect."_ Shockwave eyed the Decepticons. _"Keep optics on the femme, Prime and his lieutenant. We will target the shards, first. They are not as well guarded."_

_"No more shards have yet been located."_

_"Autobots have half of them."_

_"We've been sloppy."_

Another wailing moan sounded, and all the bots cringed. Shockwave was the first to straighten, and he growled, optic flashing once more. _"No more being sloppy. From now on, we get what we want, and we want the femme and shards."_

_"Perhaps we can get her to do the work for us."_

_"Femme has heightened energy output from her spark. We cannot control her. We must not kill her, yet, either."_

_"Femme has sparkmates and sparkling. If we gain control of them, we gain control of her."_ All optics blinked, flashing. _"Sparkmates are smug, cocky. They love to show off their 'talents'. If we can transfer to one of them, we can control them, and control the femme, too."_

Shockwave glanced at them, before nodding. _"Do it."_

* * *

**(Next Day, Bella's POV)**

Glancing over my shoulders, I frowned at the Mazda that drove past, only to relax when I realized it was the wrong make and model. Then I smiled at the red Corvette that followed it, sleekly moving in and out of traffic with practiced ease.

At least this was easier, with my sparkmates more or less running the block repeatedly, just for a chance to drive past and check up on me. Though, I think people were beginning to catch on after the _same _yellow Ferrari made it's sixth trip past, on the same street.

_**"Slow it down, guys. Humans are starting to suspect."**_ I warned them over our private links, trying to hide my smirk.

_**"Can you blame us for being worried?"**_ Came Sunstreaker's snap, before he growled.

Rolling my eyes, I walked up to the bus stop and smiled at the familiar form. _**"No. I love you, too."**_ The twin feelings of adoration that came from them both made my smile widen. _**"But Optimus is here. Have faith in him. If you wanna do something helpful, keep an eye on my apartment and make sure no 'Cons try to set up any of their sneaky attacks."**_ Sensing something, My smile turned into a smirk as I boarded the bus, not even bothering to flash Optimus my I.D. _**"And feed Sunfire for me, please?"**_

No matter how much time I spent with them, I sincerely doubted I'd ever get used to a lot of the differences in our species. Not only could a _mech_ carry a sparkling, but they could _feed_ them, too!

The sudden image of Sunstreaker breast feeding Sunfire had me tripping over my own two feet, and clumsily landing in an open seat near the front. _Oh, dear PRIMUS! Bad mental image! Bad mental image!_ Horror mixed with amusement, and I could feel the interest of the twins as they mentally poked at me, trying to find out what was so hilarious.

So with an evil grin, I pictured Optimus pole dancing in a thong as clearly as I could -there's something to be said for detailed imaginations and strong stomachs- before letting them into my head so they could see it. The speed and ferocity with which they recoiled caused me to snort painfully in the attempt not to fall out of my seat and curl up into a giggling ball.

_**"You asked..."**_ I taunted, before gently closing them out of my personal thoughts. You know, once you get used to the whole processor thing, it's like second nature. Then again, giant computerized brains... It's not really surprising how easy some of this is.

Looking around the bus, I nearly face planted to find the giggling hens from before, giggling away in the back of the bus. It didn't take a genius to get what they were laughing about. Especially when they continuously pointed at Optimus and spoke, before laughing again.

Getting up, I wandered to the front of the bus, and tapped Prime on the holographic shoulder. "Let me guess, they're regulars?" I gestured vaguely to the ladies in the back.

He briefly glanced at them, bright blue eyes locking on them and sending them into blushing, giggling masses, before smiling and turning back. "I'm not familiar with that term."

It was a little odd, watching two old ladies acting like school girls, but I took it all in stride. "They ride you alot, I mean." I clarified, before my eyes widened in horror. With a whine, I dropped my head onto his shoulder. "Oh God, bad phrasing!" My cheeks burned with embarrassment, and I began imagining everything possible to keep that mental image from crossing my mind.

Optimus chuckled. "If you are asking if I pick them up regularly, then yes. I seem to have chosen their regular route as my patrol route."

I choked a little, on a laugh. "Yeah, that's it. It has nothing to do with the physical appearance of your holographic self at all." I rolled my eyes sarcastically. "It's just chance." Catching his confused look, I raised an eyebrow. "Let's put it this way, Optimus. If Elita were here, those two would probably battle her for your attentions."

I probably should have been a little more careful mentioning his missing sparkmate. I had no idea how he'd handle it, but to my surprise, he laughed. A full hearted laugh, at that.

"I see." He glanced at them, smiling, and I swear to God one of them almost had a heart attack. "I suppose it's a good thing they don't know the real me."

"You mean the twenty-eight-foot-tall you?" I put in, mock innocently. "Haven't you heard? Women like tall guys. Guys the size of skyscrapers might be a little daunting..." Suddenly remembering the reason I'd come here to begin with, I abruptly sobered. "Oh! By the way, you need to get everyone off you." Realizing how that sounded, I groaned and shook my head. _Stop that, Bella! Now is not the time for a mind perverted enough to make Sunstreaker blush like a virgin!_

Optimus didn't seem to catch the inflection, because his own smile faded. "Do we have a problem?"

"One that involves you-" I paused then. _That'd be obvious. If _he's_ following, there's no way he'd miss Optimus suddenly booting everyone from his alternate form._ "Um, never mind, but we need to talk, privately." I only knew how to select the twins' channels, and because I usually traced it along our bond.

They were like mental strings attached to me, and I could close my eyes and follow each one back to it's respective twin. I didn't have that with Optimus.

"Speak lowly. I can focus on your voice and hear you." He advised, looking concerned.

I glanced around, noting that more than one person was looking our way. It really wasn't that usual for a random passenger to spend so much time talking to the bus driver. Especially when they generally had a 'no bothering the driver' rule in effect for the bus routes.

I'd have to make this quick.

Turning forward again, I bowed my head, allowing my hair to act as a shield, keeping my face out of the sight of the others. "The First Prime visited me again." If he was surprised, he didn't show it. I guess I kind of expected him to jerk in surprise or something, but he barely batted an eyelash. He did, stiffen, however. "He said the Decepticons aren't the only ones effected by the creatures."

He nodded, eyes tightening. "Yes, that is true. We've all been affected."

"No." His eyes flashed to me, and I let my look speak for me.

"That isn't what you meant."

"No, it isn't. He meant one of us is infected."

Now the bus shuddered a little, and in a casual way, Optimus acted as though he were swerving around something in the road. "Why didn't you tell us over internals?" His teeth were grit, but otherwise, he looked perfectly in control. "If we're in danger-"

"We don't want _him_ to know we've caught on. Remember, the creatures are smart, and will kill a bot if they think they're in danger." I placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing slightly. "If we wanna save the infected Autobot, we need to buy some time until we can figure _some_ weakness to these things."

"Hmm... What about the others?"

"Don't speak to them over internals. Only tell the bots with easy and constant access to him, and make sure _everyone_ knows not to tell him." That's all I had, for now. "I'm working my way to Jazz, but 'Cade and Jesse are out, so I can't tell them. I was thinking of telling Jolt, though. Since he checks in with Ratchet regularly, he can inform him, and they can start working on plans."

He nodded, "That's a good plan. Inform whatever humans you can, as well. We don't want to risk them being left alone with... What bot is it?" He pulled to a stop, and I watched as the majority of the people got off, heading towards the busy mall.

That more or less left just the giggling hens, Prime and myself.

I glanced at them, to see they were deep in muted conversation, before turning forward again. "Boomer."

Optimus' eyes widened, before narrowing. "He came into contact with-" My sharp nod cut him off. "So it can spread through brief contact."

"Which is why we need to warn the others." I murmured, before seeing another stop pull up. Hearing rustling behind me, I eyed the women who shot me slightly jealous looks, as they climbed off, leaving us alone. "Next stop is mine. I'll head over to Mikeala's garage, and inform them. Oh, and Optimus?" I took a deep breath, feeling my spark flutter in my chest, uneasily. "Boomer's gonna be after me and the shards. I don't...really know what to do about myself, but you might wanna keep a closer optic on yours. I'll tell Jazz to watch his."

Though I only ever referred to the shards as more or less being _two_ shards, they were in fact over a dozen. Since being found, most of them had fused together, from a bunch of tiny pieces into two larger pieces. So now, technically, we had two pieces.

The Autobots prayed they'd find enough to rebuild their homeworld, but somehow I had a bad feeling. It just...couldn't be that easy. Sure, we had to fight the Decepticons, but...it felt like they were supposed to be on Earth. Maybe I was wrong. Or maybe they were...until they got the Allspark put back together again.

Then there's another question. Would we find _all_ the shards? Hadn't one been used to ressurrect Jazz? And one to transform me? What about those two?

Seeing my stop coming up, I sighed. I felt Optimus squeeze my hand a little, and realized he was staring at me with concern.

"Are you alright?" He glanced to the side, as though looking through his rearview mirror. A second later, Sunstreaker passed by. He blinked, then seemed to relax.

I could have lied, but right here and now, it felt like the wrong thing to do. Shaking my head, I grimaced a little. "Not really. I'm kinda terrified." I gave him a small smile as he pulled to a stop.

"Don't be." His eyes hardened with promise. "We will _not_ allow anything to happen to you."

As I got off the bus, and waved him off, I just didn't have the heart to tell him it wasn't _me_ I was worried about.

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

Twin sets of optics narrowed as the bus drove past. A bright pink Augusta MV pulled over to the side, followed immediately by a blue and white Dodge Charger police cruiser. They idled on the road, watching the events unfold before them.

_**"Who is she?"**_

_**"I don't know. Her face and abilities are unknown amongst known Autobots, and the energy output of her spark does not match any spark signatures on file."**_

_**"She's getting close to my Prime."**_

There was a long moment of silence, as if the cruiser didn't know how to take the claim. Then he vented. _**"He appears to know her quite well."**_

_**"Regardless. I want to know who that femme is. I won't allow some Decepticon pretender slag harm my Prime."**_

_**"Until we know for certain who and what she is, I would highly suggest controlling your temper. Let us follow her for now. She was speaking of some sort of infection among the Autobots, I believe?"**_

_**"Somebot named 'Boomer'. I've never heard of him, either."**_

_**"Records only have a little information about him. Apparently he was a sidelines battle bot. Hanging back and attacking from the shadows to confuse the enemy in battle."**_

_**"Sounds more like a coward."**_

_**"Strategic positioning. If the Decepticon cannot see him, they cannot hit him, and while they are distracted, a fellow Autobot can sneak up on them and offline or capture them."**_

_**"Hmph, whatever. Are we following the femme or not?"**_

The bike almost angrily pulled out of her spot, clearly annoyed and suspicious. She followed after the femme, while doing everything in her power not to be caught doing so. It hadn't escaped her notice when two of the same vehicles kept passing them, and even Optimus in bus-mode made two more trips past them, before disappearing.

_**"I still do not see why we haven't contacted the others."**_

_**"We explore first, get a feel for our situation, and acclimate. Then we report in. We are no use to them if we can't process straight due to the confusing surroundings."**_ The voice was distracted. _**"She has multiple bots following her. I don't recognize the personal signals. The channels have changed."**_

_**"I've noticed that as well. It seems they've modified their internal communications links. That is highly unusual. Something must have happened."**_

There was a small growl, and the bike slipped around a corner, along with the femme. _**"Something to do with that femme, I'm certain. We find out her designation and purpose, and then do whatever must be done."**_

_**"Then can I have my holographic form back? You've manipulated it long enough. I tire of being a 'giggling, elderly human female'."**_

Now there was a snort of amusement, and laughter over the internals. _**"What's wrong, can't handle it?"**_

_**"I don't **_**want**_** to handle it. That form is nothing **_**like**_** me."**_

_**"Fine. As soon as we're done, you can have your holographic form back."**_

_**"Thank you. I am starting to feel quite disturbed about giggling like a..."**_ There was another moment of silence. _**"'School girl with her first crush' over Optimus prime."**_

Another bark of laughter, and the bike swerved a little. _**"When you put it like that... You can have that form back now, if you like."**_

_**"Not now. Will take a moment for my systems to restore control of my avatar to myself. It isn't logical to attempt it while 'driving'. I would put the humans at risk."**_

_**"Hmm... Fine then. When we're done. Now lets go, before I'm cut off by that fragging yellow Ferrari once more. I swear to Primus I'll transform and stomp on it, if I have to."**_

_**"And give us away."**_

_**"I would be completely worth it."**_

_**"Hmm..."**_

They followed the girl to a quieter location, shocked to find two more Autobots in the area. They watched as she approached what appeared to be a mechanics place, with regular vehicles littered about, and the occasional person working on them.

Silently, they each pulled off to one side of the road, watching as the femme walked up to another human femme, the second femme crouching on the back of yet another motorcycle, painting it. They listened as they spoke, and didn't miss it when both the Ferrari _and_ the Corvette made one final passing, before disappearing out of sight and sensor range.

* * *

**Written** : Feb 8, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	86. Chapter 86

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Okay, so we lost the Mazda. I really have no idea if that's a good thing or not. All I know is, the moment I stopped seeing the familiar blue form, I almost let out a literal whoop of joy. Especially when I spotted Jazz sitting at the curb of Mikeala's dad's garage. I was more than happy to spot Mikeala, straddled on top of that bike from the moment, although I did have a weird deja vu moment, and had to shake my head to clear it._

_She looked like quite the sex pot up there, too. Remind me to make sure Sam doesn't see her like that. At least...not if he's driving. Or walking. Or trying to hold a coherent conversation, for that matter._

_Jolt honked slightly in greeting, and I couldn't help but shake my head as a man poked his head out of the garage, looking around in confusion. I guess that was her father, and I caught the amused glance she sent me, before waving me over. Joining her, I kept admittedly glancing back. I might not have spotted the blue Mazda, but that didn't mean I was completely naive to the Cybertronian signatures nearby. It could have been the twins for all I knew, but I thought they'd left._

_Still, I shook it off, with the heavy weight of the news I had to give. I focused on Mikeala before me, torn between going ahead and plowing into the issues, or holding back and just chatting first._

_Of course, she was the one who started, positively beaming at me._

_-Bella_

* * *

"Oh my God!" Mikeala squealed as she ran over and hugged me tightly. "You were _so_ right!"

Part of me was happy she thought so. The rest of me was wondering... "Huh?" I stood there, frozen, my mind trying to think over what I'd said that was right. Well, besides the usual. Considering how things were, I doubted she was talking about Boomer's infection. Obviously. She wouldn't be squealing with joy if she was.

Pulling back, she giggled and rolled her eyes, before hopping off the bike and straightening. I noticed the tiny truck that pulled out of the garage. Wheelie had taken up his position as her little in-home guardian, at my request, and had taken to her almost immediately. "It's Sam!" The look on her face was so alive and excited. "We were out, relaxing at the lookout, and he's telling me how glad he is that we got off that island."

I immediately began to wonder if he was going to go through with his plan to leave the Autobots.

"And he was saying how he didn't want to lose me, and just blurted it out!"

I blinked at her again. "He blurted what out?" I thought for a moment, before a thought crossed my mind, and my eyes widened. "Did he...?" Whatever my expression showed, she nodded happily, beaming. "He actually _said_ it?" I was glad, but geez, it took a hell of a lot to work the words out of him in the movie!

She nodded. "Yeah! I mean, he blurted it out, completely absent-mindedly. He was all like 'I don't know what I'd do without you, because I love you so much'-" Then she paused. "Well, maybe not those words exactly, but pretty damn close to it! I was like 'What did you just say?' and he repeated it, before his eyes widened and I thought his face was going to explode!"

My squeal of excitement matched hers. "I bet he blubbered and stuttered away, too!" At her nod, I could almost envision it. "Did you say it back?"

Now she sobered. She glanced away, wringing her hands in the bottom of her tank top, and chewing at her lip. "I...I couldn't. I mean...it was all so fast, and unexpected." She turned away from me, stepping back towards her bike a little.

I froze again, this time with a sense of growing horror. _Wasn't _she_ the one trying to get _him_ to say the words, in the beginning of the second movie?_ "Wait, you _didn't_ say it back?" Her shoulders began to shake, and I didn't know whether to feel disappointed or angry, or what. "Mikeala?"

Suddenly she spun, and broke out laughing. "Of course I said it back!"

I was completely uncomprehending for a moment, before I felt my eyes narrow. "I should strangle you." A less than kind name crossed my mind, but I couldn't help but feel my own lips turn up. "I swear to God, Rika's been wearing off on you."

She laughed again. "I just can't believe he actually said it! I feel like this huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders. And Sam told me he was looking into colleges-"

I felt my heart skip a beat, remembering how well _that_ went.

"But decided he'd look for a local college just to stay near me." I never knew it was possible for anyone to be so happy, but then again, with a love like theirs, if anyone could manage it... "So anyways, I wasn't expecting you today." She leaned on her bike. "I was planning to call you tonight to arrange a party night."

Now my face fell.

Our last party night had been canceled, due to Sarah wanting nothing more than to spend time _at home_ with her loving family. Sam had asked Mikeala out, and Rika disappeared off somewhere. I'm guessing she snuck off with Jesse. I was more than happy to be with my twins, though, so I wasn't complaining.

Yet.

But now...now wasn't the time for a party, and I think Mikeala saw that on my face, too.

Her smile faded. "Or...not. Bella? What's wrong?"

I opened my mouth to tell her, before pausing. One last look around, and my eyes stopped on the bike and the police cruiser down the street. It was odd to see the cruiser, but then again, if Mikeala's dad just got out of prison. It might have been a parole officer or something, for all I knew.

Gesturing for her to follow me, I walked around to the passenger side of the Chevy Volt and slid in. She climbed into the driver side, we closed the doors, and I tapped Jolt on the dashboard. "Hey Jolt, can you mute any comms you have going? I kinda wanted to have a private girl talk with Mikeala." Then I paused. "Well, you can leave open a channel to Jazz. We all know the saboteur will be listening in, anyways."

A muffled 'I will not!' reached our ears, and despite the news I had to deliver, I couldn't help but giggle with Mikeala.

"See?"

There was no missing the way the Solstice sank down on it's axels in response to my teasing tone.

"Communications channels to all bots but for Jazz have been muted." Was the almost immediate response.

I sighed, my amusement fading. "Good, because Jolt? Jazz? We have an issue, and only you two can hear what I'm about to say. Well, you two, bot-wise." I gave Mikeala an apologetic glance. "Optimus and my twins already know about it, but we need to keep a few of the bots in the dark."

"Darkness makes no difference from light, for us."

I grinned a little, weakly. "I meant we can't tell some bots, just yet."

"Oh. I see."

Nodding a little, I began into my story. I told them about the visit from the First Prime and his news. I told him about my suspicions about Boomer. I told them about the dangers, if he _was_ infected, and I'm pretty sure the look on my face told them about my fears, if he was.

"You believe he'll come after you."

"Remember Ramjet?" I asked pointedly, shuddering a little.

"Hmm... I'll have to inform Ratchet. He'll need to know as undoubtedly, there will be some form of medical procedure involved."

"Actually, Jolt, can you open a channel to Ratchet?"

"Channel open."

"What is this? I'm busy!"

"Wow, crotchety as ever." I made a face at Mikeala, who began to giggle in response. "And here we are to deliver some pretty grim news too."

The line was silent.

"So you're listening now? Or did you just mute us? Because seriously, if you wanna fantasize about Starscream and his trine belly dancing in thongs, feel free." The muted chokes and gags, and strange whirrings made me laugh. "Okay, okay, don't glitch." The laughter faded abruptly. "This is really serious."

The strange sounds faded immediately. "What's wrong?"

"We think Boomer might be infected by the parasite."

"Can't be. I scanned him."

"Yeah, but the First Prime seems to think he is." More silence. I knew that, the news coming from a Prime would make more of an impression than if it just came from me. "And he _has_ been acting weird, right? What if you just didn't pick up on it? I mean, it could have found a way to hide."

"I suppose...that _is_ possible. We have encountered creatures able to mimic the energy output of other species before. If this creature somehow managed to jam my signal, or mimic that of Boomer's energy output signature, I would have missed it in my initial scans, and because he seemed alright, I never performed an in depth scan."

"Did the dust or remains tell you anythng?"

"Hmm... Nothing more than we already knew."

I thought hard, trying to think of something else. "What about a way this creature could have come to Earth. Starscream didn't come here infected, I don't think. I mean, when he captured me, he seemed like the same, homocidal maniac he'd been portrayed as in most fanfictions."

"Could it have come like you guys do? As a meteor or something?"

Mikeala's hesitant question had my eyes widening. "Wait! Wasn't there reports of a meteor landing? It wasn't like with the Autobots. There was a strange secretion left behind, right?" And Cybertronians didn't leave secretions... And yes, I shuddered in horror as my mind dived into less than sanitary thoughts. "Can we hack into the files of wherever the humans took the samples to, and find out if it's from the same creature?"

"Yes, I believe we can. Give me a few moments."

I nodded, more to myself than anything. I had something new on my mind now. I'd told almost all the bots I could about all this. Now, how did we get that thing _out_ of Boomer? Without killing him?

Or for that matter, without infecting another bot?

My worry was met with twin senses of reassuring and concern. Hidden questions of 'are you okay' filtered into my head, and I struggled not to smile in this grim time, as I mentally reassured my twins I was alright.

"The humans were unable to identify what they found, but I was able to locate copies of their work. It seems they moved everything to a place called 'Area 51'."

I made a face at Ratchet's report. "Figures. Roswell crap, as usual. Anything remotely unEarthly? Take it to Area 51." There was more silence, and I ducked my head. "Sorry, Dr. Minty. Go ahead."

Silence for a second longer, before a couple of clicks. "I wish you would not call me that. They were unable to find anything from their testing so far. They are in the midst of running numerous tests, seeing what the secretions react to, and how they react, as well as subjecting it to DNA testing to find out if it's radioactive, or in any other way harmful to the human species."

"They'll either obliterate it, or modify it into some new bioweapon." I nodded to myself, truly hating what humans were capable of, in that very moment. "We'll need to get those samples from them later. For now, we need to find a way to neutralize or kill the parasite, without harming Boomer."

"Unfortunately, so far, none of the tests have had any reaction but to help the secretions begin to grow a strange, organic creature. From the test results and educated guessing, I'd say there was a seed of the creature in the specimen, and they fed electrical energy into it at different intervals. The more energy they fed it, the faster the rate of growth in the new life form."

"If it's growing a life form, we need to get it away from them _now_!" I almost shouted, realizing what that could mean.

"Hm, yes, I agree. I'm already sending a report to Optimus and Jazz, who will have to come up with some sort of secretive strategy to take it out, without alerting the creatures to the fact we know about them."

"Wait, how would one affect the other if they're in two separate places?" Mikeala was frowning, her face paled. All her earlier excitement over Sam had fled out the window.

"Again, their test results. It seems that once the creature reached four inches long, they attempted to dissect it, only to end up with two creatures. Remaining alive. From what we've seen with Ramjet and Boomer, I can only guess, but this creature seems to split itself and has some sort of-"

"Okay, you know what? Let's just get to the point." My head was all but spinning. "How do we get it out of Boomer?"

"At this moment? I have no idea."

I sighed, nodding a little. "It's okay, Ratchet. We'll figure it out."

"I certainly hope so. Not knowing if the creature's only way of spreading is through physical contact... I must scan everyone, thoroughly. And we must limit physical contact with Boomer."

"Schedule everyone for a general checkup." I was distracted. My mind was elsewhere, but the answer was there. "Tell them it's just a precautionary thing, to be safe. Have Optimus at your side, in case you need backup. That shouldn't arouse suspicion and give you a chance to check everyone."

"Boomer will freak."

I glanced at Mikeala, blinking out of my thoughts. "We exclude him. He's already been checked out, remember?" She nodded. "As for minimizing contact with each other, you can use a quarantine reason. Specify that you're concerned about possible infections and other ways for the creature to spread, and that you want to minimize it as much as possible."

"...'Ave ya eva given thought ta strategizin', lil missy?" Jazz spoke up for the first time. "Ya got a talent fer thinkin' on da spot."

I actually smiled a little. "And I'm not actually thinking about it. I'm still kinda in shock about the fact Boomer's actually infected."

As if all the repetitive speaking of his name had summoned him, I heard Boomer's voice in my head. The close, almost intimate nature of it made me shudder, even as I realized it was a private communications link.

_**"Isabella, I require a moment to speak with you. Can you meet me at the local beach as soon as possible?"**_

_No! Hell no! Bloody fricken hell no!_ Terror swept through me, and I grabbed the arm of the seatrest. _**"Can't you talk about it over the comms? I'm having quality girl time." **_I hated how frantic my voice sounded, even as I glanced at Mikeala.

_**"I'm afraid it cannot. I need to speak with you, alone, as soon as possible."**_

_He just had to say 'alone'._

The twins were inquiring about the sudden tenseness over my bond, but I was too focused on the almost forceful feeling of the link Boomer held open. He waited for an answer and every fibre of my being practically screamed _NO_. But how could I say it? I didn't normally turn down requests like this, and if I did, it'd seem suspicious!

"Bella?"

_**"What's going on? Bells?"**_

_**"Are you in danger? Tell me who the frag is messing with you!"**_

Blinking a little, I took a deep breath. "I have to go." I tried the door handle, but it refused to budge. "Jolt..." I really _did_ have to go. If nothing more than to keep up the appearance that nothing was wrong. That was my plan to begin with, wasn't it?

"Internal temperatures have risen several degrees. Spark energy output as increased drastically, to alarmingly high levels. Optics appear glazed. Something is wrong."

"I'm fine." I tried the door with a little more force. "But let's put it this way. Boomer wants to talk to me, and if I don't go, he's gonna find it suspicious. Right now, the _last_ thing we want is the creature in him getting suspicious."

_**"Bella?"**_ Boomer's tone remained patient, empty.

_**"Just trying to talk Jolt into letting me leave. He's concerned about, uh...infection!"**_ I could have smacked my head into the dash board before me. _Way to be believable._ _**"That is, Ratchet's apparently considering indepth scans of all the bots, to make sure no one was infected."**_

There was no mistaking the tension that suddenly slammed into me from his side. _**"I've already been scanned. Multiple times."**_

_**"You're exempt."**_ The more I spoke to him, the more I calmed. At least this thing was rational. If I could keep bots nearby, he likely wouldn't try anything, right?

_**"Bella! We're here! What's going on?"**_

Sideswipe's urgent voice made me aware of two gunning engines nearby, and I wanted to roll my eyes. _**"It's nothing." **_I breathed deeply, and it did wonders to calm me, which in turn, seemed to calm my mates. _**"Just something I need to take care of. Jolt, let me out. I have a plan."**_ In truth, I didn't, but telling them that wouldn't exactly help my case now would it?

Almost reluctantly, he opened the door, and I escaped into the fresh air before he could change his mind. As soon as I was outside, I began reading my internal sensors, focusing on them to try and make out which bots were near.

And that's when all hell broke lose.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Oops?_

_Yeah, so those energy signatures I was reading before? Weren't the twins. Or the Mazda. Or Jazz and Jolt. _

_The moment I pointed them out to the bots, the vehicles approached with no hesitation what-so-ever. Was it bad that, as little as I knew about those two particular bots, I was able to identify them from their alternate modes, either way?_

_And why the hell did they have to show up _now_ of all times? I mean, talk about crap timing!_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Feb 27, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	87. Calm Before the Storm

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I'm sorry ahead of time, but this story _is_ going to contain character death. But just so you know, it's not, well...not the Autobots, or former 'Cons, for that matter... Or rather, the ones in the canon-verse... You know what? I'll stop talking and let you see for yourself, but I DO promise a happy ending!

* * *

**(Normal POV)**

_**"You have not yet retrieved either the femme or her mates."**_

_**"The femme is acting oddly. States-"**_

_**"Retrieve the femme or her mates. Backup is almost in range. We must not fail this time. Mother is hungry. We **_**must**_** retrieve this 'Allspark'."**_

_**"Not all of the shards have been found."**_

_**"It does not matter. Bring the femme. She can feed mother for a long time."**_

_**"Find femme, or her mates. Mission understood."**_

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

Of all the worst possible time for _any_ bot to show up, right here and now had to take the cake. I stared at the bots, more put out by their sudden appearance than anything else. I watched as Jazz formed his holoform, dashing over to the hot pink bike in the lead, and shouting at it to stop.

_Yeah, because a man appearing out of thin air, shouting at a riderless bike is any less weird than the riderless bike driving around on it's own._

"Yo, would ya _stop_ already!" He slapped the front end of the bike, who shouted at him in an indignant feminine voice.

"What do you think you're doing, you pit-spawned, son-of-Unicron?"

"Shhhhhhhhh!" He hissed violently. "Humans ain't s'posta know about us!" He glanced around wildly, before nearly sagging against the bike in relief. I followed his gaze to notice know one seemed to be paying attention to the commotion, before turning my attention back to them. The smile on Jazz's face was more than brilliant. "Man, it's good ta see ya!"

"Sure doesn't seem like it, and I _know_ we're supposed to keep ourselves hidden, but unlike _some_, we have no holographic forms." The voice came back, remarkably more amused now.

"So ya decida ta drive down da residental streets?" He raised an eyebrow in amusement.

"And you decide to run at her, the riderless bike, yelling at her to stop driving?" I countered, raising an eyebrow when he jumped and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "What, forget about some of us?" I gave him a look, before wincing a little at the pressure of Boomer's link in my head. "Uh, right." Shaking my head a little, I looked around carefully again, before facing the new bots hesitantly. "Jazzy here can fill you in-" I pointedly ignored his grimace. "-but I'm needed elsewhere." I glanced fleetingly at the disturbingly silent twins at the edge of the street.

The vehicles remained silent, undoubtedly wondering who the frag I was. Good thing I didn't call them by the names floating around in my processor. Or tell them they chose wise forms. Or tell them it was about bloody time they showed up. Hell, I was more put off by what was coming with Boomer, than the fact _that_ very femme was standing before me!

Later, there'd be hell to pay, when it really sank in.

For now?

"Oh slag, we got more company."

Jazz's groan made me groan in frustration, the sound turning into a growl at Boomer's ever growing impatience. _**"Hold your bloody horses! We've got unexpected company!" **_I all but screamed over the internal links, realizing last moment that it was over public channels. I was suddenly all too aware of the voices of multiple mechs demanding answers.

_**"Bella? What's going on?"**_ Optimus' voice was tense, alert.

_**"Nothing, big bot, some friends just showed up unexpectedly."**_ I assured him calmly. I didn't tell him who just yet, because the last thing I needed was a giant red and blue city bus racing insanely around the tiny streets we were on, or transforming in the middle of a residential area.

_**"Bella, you're not going! We forbid you to go!"**_ Sunstreaker was screaming over his more personal internal links.

"You can't fragging stop me!" I shouted back, so annoyed, I didn't think to keep my voice down, until I shot a look towards the garage to see Mikeala's dad pop his head out. "Oh! Sorry Mr. Banes!" I called, waving. Shooting his daughter a pleading look, I struggled to think up a plausible excuse.

Luckily, even as the cruiser pulled in, Mikela was smiling at me. "I'll take care of it." Her look turned concerned. "Just...be careful. Don't do anything stupid." Without waiting for the smartass reply forming on my lips, she spun and darted to the garage. "Hey, dad-"

"Bella?"

I turned to find Rika and Jesse walking over, eyeing the pink bike and second cruiser hesitantly. As she reached my side, Rika smiled, though it looked strained. And before she could question me, I shook my head. "No time to explain, but I gotta go-"

"Like slag you do!" The low hiss had me facing dual glares.

"Like I said, would you rather he suspect something? Offline a decent mech?" I made sure it there was no chance of even a stray thought of it crossing my mind, that Boomer could latch on to. "I have a chance to just talk to him. Just stay nearby, and I'm sure he won't try anything." I couldn't help the nagging doubt, however. "I mean, he's supposed to stay undercover, right?"

"So you _think_." Sunstreaker's look suggested I might need to seek professional help, because I'd obviously lost my mind.

Sideswipe's was only marginally better, but at least he didn't say anything outwardly about it. He just hummed, looking troubled.

"Um, excuse me-" The voice had Rika and Jesse startling, and Barricade narrowing his holographic eyes at the cruiser, even though it had been the bike to speak. "What's going on here?"

"And _why_ is there a _Decepticon_ in the area?" Barely concealed malice hung in the simpe question, spoken by the second cruiser, that looked ready to explode at the slightest provokation.

I could have just _seen_ the multiple glitches he'd have, as he learned all he'd missed. Hell, I could freakin' _count_ the number of things that would make him glitch!

1) My arrival from another world, and my information on Transformers.

2) My once being human, turning into a Cybertronian.

3) My connections to the First Prime.

4) My seemingly convincing multiple 'Cons to switch sides.

5) The new parasitical threat.

6) Sunfire. Probably.

7) The fact I was a _prankster_, almost as bad as the twins, _and_ I was now officially their mate.

Oh yeah, he'd probably have to be institutionalized, the Cybertronian way. Or glitch and never wake up. Or break something important. Or go 'Con and never come back. However, because of the issues at hand, all of that was the last thing on my mind. Couldn't you tell?

"We have a situation." Jolt put in, wandering idly past me to sit on the bike. I watched as it stiffened, but he laid a hand on it, and no words were spoken. I had a feeling there was some internal communications going on there.

Sighing heavily, I turned to my twins. "Okay, look. I'm going to talk to Boomer. Alone. You can either drive me there and wait nearby, or I can ask him to come pick me up." The idea, even as it passed my lips, made me shudder. "_Please_ don't make me ask him for a ride!"

_**"You expect us to **_**help**_** you?"**_

_**"You are my mates, aren't you?"**_ I shot back, watching as Sideswipe cringed and Sunstreaker snarled. _**"You obviously saw something in me worth having, and hopefully it wasn't just my sexy curves."**_ I was annoyed, and I was bitching. I knew it. _**"So I'd hope by now you'd have **_**some**_** faith in me. I took on Sideways and survived-"**_

_**"Barely."**_

My eyes narrowed. "Are you going to help, or not? Because right now, I don't need your attitudes." Abruptly, an idea hit me, and I turned what felt like a sickly smile on Barricade. It must have looked pretty sickly, too, because _he_ cringed away. "Barricade would trust me to know what I'm doing, I'm sure. Right big brother? You'll take me to the beach?"

He blinked at me, looking startled, before a distinctly uncomfortable look crossed his features. "Femme-"

"If he did, we'd slag him."

"Not with me in him, you wouldn't." I countered, suddenly feeling very pleased with myself. _**"Sorry Boomer, I'll be there shortly. Just sorting out some issues with the newcomers."**_ It was distinctly quieter in my head. The voices of the other Autobots had faded, and I wasn't sure why, but I was worried. "And not with me near him, and knowing you'd give us away, or be distracted, allowing _him_ a chance to get to me." Folding my arms over my chest, I dared them to argue with me.

Barricade growled. "I never agreed to any of this slag. And just why is her seeing Boomer a bad thing?" He looked around.

Now my smirk faded. "Because, he's uh... Not exactly himself." I shook my head, walking past him to the car. "I'll tell you about it privately."

"Hey, we can take you!"

I ignored Sideswipe. "No you wouldn't. Or, if you _did_, I'd probably offline from your bitching alone!" I called over my shoulders, before popping the passenger door open. Then I paused as Rika appeared, sliding into the seat in my place. "Excuse you?"

"I'm going too." The look on her face wasn't one of amusement.

"The hell you are!" I once again folded my arms over my chest, glaring at her. "This isn't a stroll in the field!" I gaped in shock, watching as Jesse wandered around, big as he pleased, and glanced at me casually before climbing into the driver seat. "Oh come on! This isn't a picnic!"

"You either go with us, or don't go at all." Was all Rika said, before shutting the door in my face.

I shot Barricade a look, and growled as he smirked and let his holographic form fizzle out of sight. I stared where he'd been, feeling any smugness dissipating. Looking to the twins, I saw nothing but daring in their eyes. They were the ones smirking now, as if they knew Rika's decision would make me change my mind. Even Jazz was waiting, eyebrow raised.

The only ones not seemingly paying attention were Jolt and the newcomers, who seemed to be lost in mental conversation.

I saw the challenge. I knew that if I went, and I was at all wrong, Rika and Jesse would be in danger. I knew that there was a very real chance something bad could happen. To any of us. If I decided to go. Did I stop to think of the consequences, as I opened the back door and slid in next to the small stereo? Not a bit. Should I have? Yeah... I'd say so.

Either way, I slid into the back seat, barely refraining from slamming the door. After all, Barricade was just as likely to slam me _into_ the door, if I did. I shut the door carefully, before my fingers dug into the seatbelt, jamming it into the locking socket across my waist.

"Take it easy, femme." He growled.

"Drive." Was my only reply, well, but for an address. For a long moment, I remained silent as the cruiser drove off, more than aware that my mates took a disturbingly long time to come after us and stayed back. I could also feel them dampening their bonds, hurt, concern, and utter _anger_ playing over their links, before that wet blanket feeling fell over it all.

I felt hollow. I got my way, but it was a small victory.

"So? What the slag's gotten into those two pests?"

"Boomer's infected, but you can't tell anyone. Boss bot's having us keep it on the down low." I didn't need to tell him just yet that, that was all my idea. I explained about the vision, and the suspicions. I explained, when Barricade screamed at me for being stupid to agree to talk to him alone, that it was the only option. That I had no real reason not to, without seeming like I was acting odd.

He clearly didn't like it, but fell silent.

So were my twins.

And from the feel of it, the rest of the bots had pulled out of that little mental network, making my head a startlingly empty place. I paused then, when a pair of large, innocent optics flashed before my vision. _**"Where's Sunfire?"**_ She'd been in the twins, last I knew. _**"If you two were giving me slagging crap for all this, and brought her with you, it only makes you two the biggest fragging hyprocrites in the universe!"**_

_**"She's with Jazz."**_ Came Sunstreaker's brusque response, his own anger increasing, before he fell silent once more.

It was clear my twins were more than angry with me. For once, Rika didn't have a smartass comeback to any of this, and Jesse looked like he was just keeping his opinion to himself. He never glanced anywhere but straight ahead.

"Okay, fine! Spit it out! I'm a freakin' moron for agreeing to this, after Ramjet, I _know_! Okay? I know!" I gripped the seats tightly, until Barricade's snarl caused me to release them.

"Then why be stupid about it?" He growled.

"Like I said, what other logical choice did I have?"

"_LIE_, fraggit! Aren't you humans supposed to be equipped with the ability for deception? Use it!"

"I...couldn't." Now I looked out the window. "I couldn't think fast enough. I didn't have an excuse not to meet him."

"He caught you off guard." Rika's quiet voice wasn't a question.

I nodded but didn't look at her. "Yeah, more or less. Look..." I sighed again. "As long as there are other bots nearby, he won't try anything. I'm sure of it. Not if he needs to remain undercover."

No one had a reply, and soon we were pulling up to the beach. The day was growing dark and foreboding. The sky was filled with black clouds, promising a violent storm. The wind had picked up, frigid against bare skin. The parking lot was empty, the beach closed, and I knew no other humans would be around. Not in this weather. As it was, it was beginning to rain as I stepped out of the car.

I could _feel_ Sideswipe venting in my head. _**"Just be careful! If you get at all afraid for your spark, please, Bella, **_**call**_** us!"**_

_**"I'm not waiting. As soon as I feel the sense of threat over the link, I'll rip his spark out myself."**_ Sunstreaker was so tense, it was hard for me to breathe. He held on to more suppressed protectiveness and possessiveness, that for a split second, it clouded my vision, before I could shake myself out of it.

_**"Do that, and you'll probably offline him before he represents any threat to me, love." **_I mentally murmured, my voice hesitant. _**"He could try something at any time. Though I don't expect him to, that thought alone is enough to make me worry. Just...wait. I'll call you if I get scared."**_ Then I paused. _**"Well, more scared."**_ The laugh was shaky. _I can do this._

"Are you sure about this?"

Rika was holding Frenzy in stereo mode. The little mech hadn't transformed since we climbed into the cruiser. I had no idea why, or if I should be worried. She stood off to the side, her hair whipping around her face, and beside her stood Jesse, who was holding the until now un-noticed Wheelie, in RC mode.

"Yeah is this-"

"Yeah." I cut Jesse off, knowing Boomer would be listening. "I'm sure. He just wants to talk is all." Still, I couldn't fight the bout of nervousness.

_**"Bella-"**_

_**"Stop it!"**_ I growled at Sunstreaker, feeling like my body was made of stone. _**"I can't even move with all your emotions rolling over me!"**_ What had happened to the wet blanket-oh, there it was.

No sooner had my words passed my mental link, than both twins slammed me out of their bonds. They blocked me completely, and I swayed on my feet, closing my eyes. I'll admit, I was beyond hurt they both just blocked me out totally. Sure, I guess I'd asked for it, but still... I was torn between the relief that I could think straight again, and the pain of knowing they could block me out so easily.

Shaking my head, I brushed past the others, stalking through the gates and out onto the sand. My hair whipped around my face so sharply, it was painful. I ignored it. The wind bit at my skin, and almost instinctively an option appeared in my peripheral to raise internal temperatures, to compensate. I ignored it. Something niggled in my mind. Doubt. Telling me I should go back and join the others, and we should all leave. I ignored it.

I approached the crouching blue mech, thankful the beach was on the outskirts of town, surrounded by miles of rocky walls and desert.

Transforming, I sighed, struggling to bury my nervousness. "You wanted to talk?"

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Well crap!_

_Why was it I was always getting into trouble?_

_I could sit at the base, enjoying the post-mating haze with my twins, and the base would be attacked._

_I could go home to get away for a while, and get caught up in an attack on the way._

_I could go bloody _shopping_ and get attacked!_

_Hell, I couldn't go three fricken days without getting attacked, it seemed!_

_So I suppose I honestly shouldn't have been surprised when two more energy signatures appeared out of nowhere, and instead of speaking to me, the blue Mazda lunged at me. I shouldn't have been shocked to the point of paralysis, but I was. I froze, and he grabbed me._

_Then, like I said before..._

_All hell broke lose._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : Mrch 4, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	88. Darkness that Consumes

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : VERY long, and VERY emotional chapter. I hope you enjoy it. My muse has been wandering for some time, but I want to sincerely thank **Anasazi Darkmoon** for talking with me about the storyline. It helped me focus enough to pull this chapter together. Thank you so much! :D

I'm also having a bit of an issue with page breaks, so if I'm missing any, it's not from lack of trying. -_- Just thought I'd throw that out there. Sorry for the late update, I've been suffering from a migraine for the last couple days that just does NOT want to go away. Dirty fragger. -_- I was notified to an issue with trying to read the chapter. It IS in fact there, I'm not sure why the update is saying otherwise. I will try to edit and update again.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Oh bloody fricken hell! _

_Just my luck. Did I have a feeling the decision to talk to Boomer would come back to bite me in the aft? Yeah, kinda. It had been a niggling feeling bugging at the back of my head. Did I realize that coming here would have a bigger effect, a more disastrous effect, than me getting into trouble? No. Not for a second. Should I have? Yeah, probably._

_But once hell broke out, it was all so chaotic, I was frozen. I was shocked, scared, and my attention was spit in so many directions at once, that even as an advanced being, I was frozen. Just...paralysed. I was...trying to sort everything out. _

_Who was shouting?_

_Who was attacking?_

_Who was in the most danger?_

_Had someone called for backup?_

_Would backup arrive in time?_

_What about the humans?_

_Where should my attention lay?_

_What should I do?_

_I was so frozen by my confusion, by the time I sorted through it all, it was far too late._

_-Bella_

* * *

_**"BELLA!"**_

_**"Move, femme!"**_

_**"Incoming Decepticons!"**_

_**"Slaggit, it's a trap!"**_

_**"Look out!"**_

_**"Get the humans out of here!"**_

My eyes were locked on Boomer, even as I registered the fact he was growling and rushing at me with _violet _optics. People and bots were screaming, and the ground shook with each of the heavy steps of the Autobots. By the time I shook myself out of the fact _Boomer_ was _rushing_ at me, I barely had time to gasp as he siezed my arms in a painful grip.

_But wait! I thought they were supposed to stay under cover!_

As soon as I felt his fingers digging into my arms, I shrieked in terror. Not because a large, powerful, possessed bot had his hands on me. No. It was the sight of the tentacles beginning to slither out of his armor, aiming for my own arms. "Oh _hell_ no!" I tried to pull away, to remember belatedly that Boomer was now about a thousand times stronger than he was before.

I couldn't break free, no matter how I twisted and turned, and with each passing moment, those tentacles were getting closer.

"BELLA!"

"Slaggit 'Con! Get the frag outta my way!"

I'm sure my gaze was as terrified as I was, when I glanced over to my twins, and I felt my heart nearly stop when I realized they were being blocked by not one, but _two_ infected Seekers. Starscream's trine mates. My twins were paying more attention to me, however, than the two Seekers easily tossing them aside and keeping them back. Even as Barricade jumped in to help, he too got tossed aside.

"BELLA!"

I spun back to Boomer, realizing with a sinking heart that... This was it. My little game plan was over faster than I ever imagined possible. His secret was out now. There was no pretending we didn't know, and praying we could cure him. "Boomer..." I stared at him, feeling terrified beyond the point of reason. I pulled hard again, and he didn't so much as budge. "Boomer please! Let me go!" I kept tugging, though I knew it was futile.

Sunstreaker was roaring like some feral animal, both in my head and verbally, and Sideswipe was little better. They threw themselves blindly at the Seekers, when I glanced over, and I could see them struggling. The Seekers had taken damage, however. Testament to the blind fury of my mates.

Feeling the fingers gripping my arms even tighter, I felt tears of fear rolling down my cheeks as I turned back to the possessed bot. He stared at me, no familiarity or recognition flashing in his optics, and the thing was almost down to his wrist by now. I couldn't pull away. I was too weak. I was just _too slagging weak_! "Boomer! Stop it!" I cried, tugging futilley once more.

I was helpless. My twins and Barricade were otherwise occupied. I couldn't grab my weapon; My arms were immobile because of his grip. My mind was rushing around, still horribly distracted by the screeching of the Autobots, as they realized what was going on. I couldn't- Wait! I could transform one of my hands!

My eyes fell to the thing creeping down his arm. My hand was curled over his wrist, from the way he was gripping my arms. Focusing, I quickly accessed the transformation protocols, and formed a blaster. Hearing him snarl, I shot blindly, and I could have screamed happily when I hit the creature dead on.

Boomer reeled back with a scream that made me recoil from the pitch alone, but he never released me. Instead, his grip got even tighter, until I _did_ scream, only this time in pain. My bad wrist immediately protested loudly enough for spots to dance in my vision, and I reacted.

Since I couldn't pull away, I did the only thing I could think left to do.

I pushed.

I pushed as hard as I could, shooting again, and felt him stagger back.

"BELLA!"

_**"BELLA! Fight him, slaggit!"**_

Any other time, and I might have had some snarky comment on my lips, but I was so focused, I just kept pushing! I shot again, sweeping a foot out and kicking him in the knee as hard as I could, before pushing again.

It was the acidic burning in my legs that warned me we'd hit the ocean, but it was Boomer's reaction that caught my attention more than anything. I froze from blasting him over and over, and pushing whenever I could. For one thing, his arm was almost gone, the creature having retreated into the armor and away from my targeting zone. For another, the sound he made caused such a sharp pain to run through my head, I swear I almost blacked out.

"What the _slag_?"

"Fraggit! Now's our chance!"

"Move!"

"Bella!"

My vision cleared and I watched as Boomer suddenly rushed forward, throwing me off balance. The expression on his face was one of blinding terror and agony, and it hit me... Salt water was detrimental to Autobots in general. The creature couldn't do much with an injured bot, and by his reaction...

Once again, I shoved. I leaned back as far as I could, before throwing every ounce of my weight forward in a rush. I turned awkwardly, crying out as my bad wrist pulled sharply and something pulled sharply, and threw my shoulder against his chest, pushing with everything I had. I felt him stagger back, and the ray of hope appeared in my heart, only be snuffed out when I felt him lose his balance.

He staggered back several feet, pulling me with him, and we both screamed. My vision flashed so red, my head swam on my shoulders, my processor going blissfully blank for a moment. I was being pulled out further, and stumbled blindly, the pain controlling me. Then, my feet slipped in the wet, frozen sand. I yelped as I fell, before a real, new, and unbelieveable pain hit me.

The pain was so horrific. It hit me where ever the icy water splashed up over me. I guess, luckily, I landed on top of Boomer. The water splashed up and hit me, but when it settled, it only climbed halfway up his body. Still, the pain was so horrific, so many warnings flashed in my vision that I couldn't make them out. I understood it as my cooling fans shorted. My wrist was sparking and went immediately numb. My body locked up, my limbs refusing to move, but that didn't mean I wasn't.

Boomer shrieked and writhed, his limps moving jerkily. The water continued to splash over us, thanks to it, causing me more agony.

"Oh my God! BELLA!"

I was frozen in pain, struggling to clear my mind enough to _get up and move_! The more he thrashed, the more pain I was caught up in. But at that scream, I became just a little more aware of my surroundings. I could hear the screaming of my twins, feel their agony over our bond. Their agony... They were in pain?

My head shot around, my vision blurry at best. I spotted them convulsing, but they weren't the only ones. The Seekers were on the ground as well, the collective screams deafening.

But it wasn't my twins my eyes landed on. I could feel their pain, a blatant mirroring of my own, but that was it. They were angry, frightened, concerned, possessive, protective, in pain, but... They were okay. No, my eyes moved past them. Past Barricade's battling form as he continued to fight against the two still standing, writhing Seekers, to the two humans running our way. There was no sign of Wheelie or Frenzy, but that didn't phase me. What phased me was the fact _two_ little _humans_ were running _towards_ the battle.

My pain was forgotten. I managed to sit up shakily, only vaguely aware of the fact that Boomer was still shaking violently. I felt desperate grips at my arms, the snarls of something not Cybertronian, and pulled away. I recoiled as if burned, seeing the creature almost oozing out from between armored plates, and slid away from the bot.

Unfortunately, that situated me further and deeper into the acidic water. I suppose on the upside, I was too damn numb at this point to feel much. My head swam funnily and things seemed to drift.

Until I laid eyes on Rika once more.

Rika was leading them, Jesse just behind her. He screamed at her to stop, reaching for her, trying to stop her, and she ignored him, continuously pulling away and running forward. Her eyes were locked on me, filled with desperation.

"GET UP!" She was screaming at the top of her lungs. "Get out of the water!"

I struggled to move, feeling an overwhelming _need_ to do as she said. I also wanted to scream at her and rip her a new one for running _into_ a battle, but I was...just _so_ tired! All the pain seemed to fade, blissfully, and I wasn't really in pain. I was kind of cold, but then again, the water wasn't exactly _warm_.

"BELLA!"

"RIKA, LOOK OUT!"

My eyes were on her, but seeing a movement in my peripheral, I felt my eyes widen. My head turned, despite the stiffness in it, and I felt my mouth open. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I was aware of screaming. I think I screamed her name. I'm not sure. Time seemed to slow down, however.

I was suddenly fully capable of movement, and I got up. I didn't know what was going on with Boomer. Hell, at that moment, I didn't even _know_ a Boomer. I didn't know the 'Cons. I didn't know the threat to me. I didn't know my twins or even Barricade.

I didn't know the cold. I didn't know I was bleeding, or in pain.

All I knew was, even as I screamed at her, screamed her name, feeling the crushing blow of agony as it struck my spark, it changed nothing.

Even as I raced forward on blissfully numb legs, my speed made no difference. My voice, screaming at her to get out of the way, didn't even make the bot aware of where he was stepping. My arms, reaching for her even as Jesse grabbed her and tried to throw them both to the side, did not stop said bot from stepping down.

The last thing I saw was her looking up, her eyes widening with horror and terror...

I shut my ears off. I shut my eyes off.

I could feel, somehow, people were calling to me, desperately trying to reach me. Somehow I knew most were good, but two were bad. But none of that mattered. I practically tore myself out of the grip that _dared_ to touch my arms, even as a foreign sense of horror and rage swept through me... I never thought it was possible to _feel_ such pain.

And I recoiled from it, like it burned me. I recoiled, finding any and all places to hide from it, until I found one that seemed to keep it at bay.

An emotional numbness flowed through me... Then new emotions surged.

It wasn't just rage. It was an overwhelming coldness to the world around me. Even without hearing it, I could _imagine_ the bones popping, the screams as they were crushed. I refused to look at them, but I was completely aware of every miniscule detail of what they must have felt.

At first, I wanted to blame them, for throwing themselves _into_ a slagging battle. That didn't help, however, even as I was somehow aware of a distant, feminine scream. No, I turned to the only other available option.

As I opened my eyes, I focused on the bot responsible. I felt the heat of rage coiling within me, and it was..._delicious_! It was _incredible_! It was _powerful_, and _hot_, and... I could _kill._ I could kill and not give a frag. In fact, I was going to take sweet pleasure in slowly and _painfully_ offlining that very bot.

Violet optics stared at me blankly, and I nearly ripped the arm off whoever _dared_ to touch me, pulling away again. I _felt_ the sneer slipping over my face as my spark burned, filled to the rim with a delicious desire for revenge. Yes, I was going to enjoy this. She was gone. He took her from me. He tore her from this world, and I was going to _enjoy_ taking him from it as well!

Stepping forward, I heard a feral snarl echo around me. It took a moment to realize it was mine.

_**"Bella!"**_

_**"Oh Primus, no!"**_

_**"Someone stop her before she gets herself slagged!"**_

_**"BELLA!"**_

Arms grabbed at me, and without looking first, I turned and fired at the bot who dared grab me. Red and blue stumbled back (were those colors supposed to mean something to me?), and I turned back to my prey, subspacing my blade in my free hand. "I'm going to enjoy this." The low, almost purring rumble was foreign to me. It was _cold_ and _cruel_.

I didn't care.

This wasn't me. Whatever this was, this was the last thing I wanted to be, but... It was easy. It was cold, and painless and...easy. I could do whatever I wanted, without a second thought. It was so _easy_! Why hadn't I found this before? I could end this war here and now! I could stop these fraggers! I could _kill_ them all! And I would... I would _offline_ them all, slowly! Painfully! They would _pay_! They tore her from me! They killed her! They _killed_ her! _He_ killed her! I would _kill_ him...

"Bella! Stop!"

I rushed forward then.

Instead of being frightened of me, however, like any _sane_ bot might have, this one turned and reached for me. With movements I didn't even know I _had_, I spun and sliced both of the offensive limbs off. I listened to him squeal, and it felt like it was somehow nourishing me. I felt my smirk grow and I sliced out in a scissor effect at his chest plates.

I knew his armor would protect him. I wasn't going for an offlining move. No, I watched his chest plates spark, and as I slipped my blades in to sensitive wiring between the shoulder joints and the actual chest plates, I took satisfaction in his squeals.

However, the more I fought him, the more I felt...blinded. His squeals weren't enough. The pain I was causing him...wasn't enough. Rika's face flashed across my mind, and some part of me just...broke when I realized I'd never see it again. I'd never hear her laugh, or her comments, and the rage I felt skyrocketed. She was _dead_! SHE WAS DEAD! He _killed_ her!

Transforming my hand back, I rushed the armless bot. I never gave any thought to the other one. I didn't care, or think of him. I grabbed the Seeker in front of me, and used my weight to throw him to the ground.

_**"BELLA! You need to stop, femme!"**_

_**"Are you slaggng glitching? Let her finish the fragger off!"**_

_**"She's losing herself! Frag it, she's going 'Con!"**_

_**"SHUT UP!"**_ The tone was a near squeal and it sent so much feedback through the link, I was vaguely aware of the bots crying out in pain.

I didn't care.

My twins called to me, their voices causing my heart to pull.

I didn't care.

Barricade tried to grab me, and lost a hand. He snarled at me, swinging his claws at me, and I swung my own at him, much more vicously. I felt like a rabid animal, and I _liked_ the power flowing through me. Oh my God, this felt good! Where was the pain? What pain? I felt _powerful_!

_**"Barricade, back off before you're offlined!"**_ Was that Optimus? Why did he sound like he was in pain?

WHY THE FRAG DID I CARE?

_He_ didn't _offline my best freaken friend_! No... This pathetic bucket of bolts before me did. He'd pay for it, too. Oh, yes. He'd pay dearly, and I prayed Ratchet's diagnosis was right, that they were all somehow linked. All those creatures would pay. One by one. And _I'd_ be the one to do it!

_**"Fraggit, femme! This isn't you! Stop!"**_

Ironhide's voice was lost in the rush of power flowing through me. I heard the ocean in my head, the crashing water and waves driving every other sound off. I stared at the bot before me...

"BELLA!"

I stepped forward.

"BELLA! STOP!"

"Dis ain't what Ri-Ri woulda wanted!"

"You didn't know her." I snarled, my tone cold, careless. "None of you knew her..." With a growl, I lunged forward. I moved with ease, kicking the Seeker in the knee joint and sending him sprawling. Then I brought my blade down along the seam of his chest plates, slicing the catches right off it.

He snarled at me, tentacles slipping out through the armor around his neck, and I blasted them into dust, causing him to shriek once more.

This time the sound didn't phase me. Without a second thought, I knelt down, straddling his waist, and harshly pulled his chest plates back, slamming my hand into the chest cavity and curling my fingers cruelly around the oddly fluctuating glow of his spark.

There was nothing romantic or intimate about this touch. Once my fingers encountered the resistence of the spark shell, I pressed forward, squeezing... HARD.

The sound he made caused glass to shatter. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I was aware of car alarms going off, glass shattering, and the shrieks of several of the other bots. I paid them no heed.

_**"STOP THIS BELLA!"**_

The commanding tone in Prime's voice only made me flinch ever so slightly. I could feel the power flowing and ebbing through me. _**"You can't control me..."**_ The taunting tone to my words might have frightened me, if I'd been in the right state of mind. _**"I'm not one of your soldiers..."**_

_**"You're an Autobot, and Autobots do NOT sink down to Decepticon levels, femme!"**_ Ironhide's voice was blatant insult. There was no masking it.

I only laughed.

_**"Let them have a taste of their own medicine for once."**_ It was _so_ much easier being heartless, than feeling the utter agony brewing beneath the surface. I felt it there, and I pushed it aside, eagerly embracing the cold indifference. I couldn't... I wouldn't survive that pain... I had to survive... I had to... My eyes narrowed. _**"They **_**deserve**_** this!"**_

_Rika... She's gone because of them..._ I pushed back the pain, forcefully, ignoring the burning that was running through my entire body. _She's gone... They took her away..._ It felt oddly like a bad dream, only unlike a dream... I wouldn't wake up. _She'll never wake up..._ I dug my fingers in, watching the agony on his face. _They deserve this. They all deserve this. She never asked for any of this! _I_ never asked for any of this!_

_**"They're prisoners of that parasite."**_ This time it was Ratchet. _**"Bella, you know this is wrong."**_

Tuning them out, I sat back, feeling all awareness fade. I could feel the body thrashing below me. I knew I was the cause. I couldn't _imagine_ the pain he was in, and it felt _good_. "How does it feel?" I asked out loud, staring into the wide violet optics.

The pain suddenly burst forth, and the mirth I felt faded in place of blinding rage. I twisted my hand ever so slightly, watching the light flare in his chest, before fading again. He screeched and thrashed, grabbing at my wrist... Incidentally, my bad wrist, but I didn't feel it.

_He took her from me. She'll never smile again. Laugh. Cry. Love. Hate. Joke. Get angry. I'll...never see her again._

"How does it _feel_? How does it feel to have one of the most important things to you die? To watch, helpless, knowing there's nothing you can do about it? You need his spark to feed, don't you?" I growled at the tentcles that shivered beneath the armor, barely visible. It was _recoiling_. "Don't you want me?" I smirked darkly. "I thought I was a big tall glass of energon to you..."

"Bella, mate, _stop _this!" Sideswipe's voice ghosted right over me.

"NO!" I squeezed even further. "You took away my _best friend_! My _sister! _There won't even be enough left of her to bury! _And_ you took Jesse! Two people I cared _deeply_ about, in one swoop! How does it feel, watching your precious spark as I _crush_ it?" I sqeezed once more, feeling the shell beginning to fracture beneath my finger tips.

"ENOUGH OF THIS, FEMME!"

The growl was so _loud_, I couldn't help but glance up. I felt for sure Primus himself had come down... Maybe to congratulate me? Encourage me? Cheer me on? Surely. I was taking out one of his bad children. And besides, no normal mech could be _that_ loud and demanding... Could they?

...Apparently, they could.

Instead of the infamous Primus himself, I found myself staring at Barricade, who held his sparking, handless wrist to his chest plates. What happened to his hand? Oh, nevermind, it was inconsequential at the moment. I'd never _seen_ him so mad. His optics were a brilliant white, but the expression was one that surprisingly actually _frightened_ me in this state of mind. Only a little, mind you, but I did feel myself recoiling.

"This is NOT the femme I stayed behind to protect! You are no sister of mine, if you claim _pleasure_ from torturing a mech!"

His words were like a slap in the face, but instead of recoiling, I snapped at him. "You're one to talk! How many bots have you offlined, just because you _could_? You tried to kill Bumblebee in the first movie! Sam! Mikeala!" My eyes felt so wide, but it was the heart in my grasp I focused on. I squeezed again, twisting and glancing back down. "You should be _enjoying _this!"

Silence was my only answer, but when I glanced back up, instead of seeing understanding, I saw nothing but horror and undiluted pain. The white was gone, replaced with the brilliant ruby his optics normally were. The normally angry, defensive mech looked so horribly vulnerable. It actually _topped_ the growing list of 'Expressions I Never Thought I'd See'.

"You're not my sister." He shook his head, stepping back. "My sister wouldn't take this kind of pleasure in hurting _anybot_." His eyes narrowed. "If you do this, there's no coming back, Bella." The look on his face spoke of a mech who knew what he was talking about.

"Mate..."

I glanced over sharply at a dangerously close voice, growling as I laid eyes on Sideswipe. He was crouched just out of arm's reach. _Stay that way..._ Some dark part of my mind whispered. Pleaded. _Stay back._

The pain seemed to be growing every passing second, and I growled loudly, turning back to the mech before me. Along with the pain came a desperation to avoid it. A desperation to stay wrapped in the cold emptiness of...whatever this was, away from the pain that would shatter me like glass.

"Come back to us, Bella..."

"I'm _right_ here." My voice cracked and my eyes narrowed. I was beginning to be aware of red flashing so brightly in my vision, and I scouted the area around where ever I was in contact with the bot below me, making sure the parasite was still terrified of me, and not trying anything. "I haven't gone anywhere."

"Come back to us, Bella..." He repeated, like he hadn't heard a word.

"I'm _RIGHT HERE!"_ I squeezed the spark below me angrily, and felt it give away a little more. I could feel the electric energy flowing over my fingertips. I could feel the hot energon as it rolled over my hand and dripped off, but I... I couldn't hear him screaming anymore...

And I...I didn't like the feeling...

"Bella, ugh!"

The grunt had my head almost instinctively turning to the side. My eyes landed on Optimus, who clutched at a hole in his torso that leaked energon. Almost absently, I felt my eyes narrow. _Who...hurt him...?_ My mind was growing more and more clouded, and a feeling of helplessness was beginning to seep into me, making me clench the spark below me to remind myself... I'm not helpless.

But... I was...wasn't I?

With Rika?

_I'm NOT helpless!_

Optimus' optics shone softly. "This isn't right. It won't bring her back."

"It'll make me feel better." My voice cracked and broke, and I think we all knew the lie. My rage was slowly fading, and I clutched it at for all I was worth. I couldn't... I _wouldn't_ let it go! No, I _needed_ it! I needed the coldness! I needed the emptiness to keep the pain at bay.

Already I could feel it sweeping around me, blocking out the light, reaching for me with whispers of spark-shattering pain... Couldn't they _feel_ it? If I let go, I'd die! I'd die too! I couldn't die! I didn't _want_ to die! _Why_ couldn't they _see_ the darkness?

"Is that so? Does it chase away the pain that feels like it will end you?"

The new voice was unexpected, and I snarled as my head spun towards the source. I should have recognized the pink femme walking towards me. Some part of me did.

"Will it end the pain that threatens to consume you? Will it satisfy you? Do you think you are avenging her, sinking down to the very levels of the creature that offlined her?"

"He'll never harm anyone ever again!" I could feel something slither out against my hand, and more on instinct than anything, I slammed my fingers shut with every fibre of force in my being. I felt the delicate glass shell as it shattered, the burst of energy that seared my hand as it exploded outwards, and the final jolt of the bot I'd just savagely offlined.

Realizing what I'd done, I looked down. I felt no satisfaction. No remorse, either. I felt...nothing. "I don't feel anything." I laughed a little, though the sound was strained. "I don't...feel anything at all."

"Bella, your body is heavily damaged-"

"Is it?" I asked idly, withdrawing my hand. I didn't even look down. "The creature's still alive." With a growl, my hand formed a blaster and I aimed for the shoulder plates. Before I could fire, however, my hand was covered with one with pink wrists, and I snarled at the femme.

"Will you shoot me, as you did Prime?"

My snarl cut off, and I stared at her in confusion. This... This feeling wasn't so bad either. Could I stay empty? No rage. No...bloodlust. No pain. Just...empty. But no, her words brought a feeling... They brought pain, and as the first few tendrils of it hit me, so did the rest.

It came rushing out of the shadows, from every angle, giving me no hope to escape. As the pain slammed into me, so did the sudden awareness I'd been missing before.

_I'd_ severed Barricade's hand!

_I'd_ shot, and _hurt_, Optimus Prime!

Feeling my eyes widen, I sucked in the deepest, most forced and painful breath I could, and with the loudest, most agonized scream I'd ever let out...

I shattered.

* * *

_Dear DIary,_

_Darkness._

_It comes in many forms. _

_Sometimes it can come as a personality. Someone with a dark personality...They'd like to cause pain. Trick people, do whatever they want to get what they want. A lot of people would call this evil._

_Sometimes it's what's around you. If it's not light out, it's dark. You're surrounded by darkness. Sometimes it's blissful, taking you away from things you'd rather not deal with. Blocking out things you really don't want to see. Other times it's frightening, making you feel alone, lost, scared, stuck..._

_When I shattered, I found darkness. At first, I didn't notice it. I locked myself away...deep inside myself. I curled up in a ball, retreating away from the whispers, the voices calling to me, begging me to come back. Then...slowly, I began to fear it._

_Once I'd gotten so used to it, I couldn't make it go away._

_Somehow, I felt protected here. Like nothing could hurt me, but if I went back... If I looked to the light, I feared what I'd find._

_Mom?_

_Dad?_

_...Rika...?_

_...Sun...Sunstreaker...? S-Sideswipe?_

_...Anyone?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : March 9, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	89. Remembering the Pain

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Okay, so I have good news, bad news and I-don't-know-that-to-call-it news.

I-don't-know-what-to-call-it-news: This story is soon coming to an end, and the ending was done a particular way. So when you read it and wonder 'the fu-?' just know I did it like that on purpose to (hopefully) make it different from most stories. There is only a handful of chapters left to this one, but I'm glad you all stuck with me. Thank you SO much for your continued support! :)

Bad news: I have been unable to pin my muse down, for the last few months. I've been bouncing around between mainly AVP, Vampire Diaries, and others. Just when I think I have a good story going, another muse hits me, and I'm off to write that one, so I have countless stories started, and no idea if I will ever finish them. Which means to please do not take too much stock in my 'good news' because there's no guarantee I'll end up finishing what I started...

Which brings me to my 'Good news':

I have recently downloaded and watched the third Transformers movie (which I love to hate, and WILL castrate Bay for), and it has spurred me to attempt another Transformers fiction. I have no idea how it will turn out, or what plot I'll go with, so please bear with me. This one will likely be another 'OC brought into Alternate reality' though I do have other ideas swimming around in my head. We'll see.

Anyways, here's the latest update. Hope you like it :)

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I had no idea how long I hid from the world, but I soon began to forget everything. I forgot about the battle, what led up to it, what happened during it, what I'd said, what I'd done... I forgot everything. I found myself crying out in the darkness, wondering where I was, and what I'd done to be there._

_And I could _feel_ some kind of shield... I didn't know if it was there to keep something out, or to keep me in. I didn't know who or what had created it, and... I was afraid to know._

_At least, on the upside, right when I felt ready to lose my mind, the darkness faded._

_Unfortunately, that was only the beginning of the horrors awaiting me._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Two Days Later, Normal POV)**

Sideswipe stomped down the hall carelessly, causing more than one soldier to jump out of his way to avoid getting squished. He didn't care, however. Their curses and shouts fell on deaf audios, and the emotionless, dim optics didn't even blink.

He rounded another corner, and stalked into the medical bay, first spotting his twin, who felt as numb as he looked. Then he lay optics on Ratchet, only a hint of question forming in them.

The medibot had clearly seen better days, and vented harshly. "No change. Her body is healing sluggishly, and her processor remains inactive."

Inactive, but online.

At least that was something.

Barricade cursed from over on his berth and shot Prime a look. He raised an optic ridge at the largest mech in the room, who was curled up in a corner, barely conscious. But instead of making a comment, he turned back to the medic. "So? Is anyone gonna ask about the creature? We gotta find some information about it!" He snarled, refusing to even glance at the other, still form in the room.

"Frag off, butterfingers." The only hint of life in Sunstreaker's form, as he curled next to his mate protectively. He held her unconscious form closer, staring at the crying sparkling on her chest plates.

"This isn't exactly the time or place." Sideswipe snarled, a hint of barely controlled rage lighting in his optics.

"I wasn't dismissing her-"

"You sure sounded like you were, 'Con. 'You aren't my sister'? I'm sure that's _just_ what she needed to hear." Sunstreaker' optics flashed crimson, but at a soft cry from Sunfire, he vented sharply and seemed to force himself to relax.

Barricade growled, wiggling the fingers of his newly re-attached hand. "I only said that to snap her out of it. If there's one thing Bella's about, it's pleasing others." He glanced away then. "I theorized if she felt she was hurting those she cared about..." It was his turn to vent, looking oddly staggered. "I under estimated the sheer force of her agony."

"We all did." Optimus' foice was harsh, and he only glanced up when Elita walked in, joining him.

"This isn't a meeting hall." Ratchet growled, glancing around. "You two are not even injured-"

"We're not leaving her."

Ratchet paused, seeing the wisdom in their words, and turned to Elita, who only flashed him a glower. Shaking his head, he muttered to himself, before turning away. "To answer Barricade's earlier question, I believe we may have found a weakness to the creatures possessing the bots."

He'd turned away to the final berth in the room, with a single, still figure laying on top of it. Boomer's form could barely be glanced at. The rust and clear salt water damage was enough to make anybot cringe, but there were pieces of the armor that pulled away and shredded from the body, where the creature had struggled and failed to escape.

"Offline the mechs they're in?" Barricade growled, optics flashing. Frenzy chittered away as the smaller mech scrambled around the berth, but no one paid him any heed. Well, no one but Sunstreaker.

"Nice protection job there, skinny." He rumbled, sneering at the tiny mech. "How, again, did you manage to let _two_ humans trap you in a piece of construction machinery?"

Frenzy gave him a look, but lowered his head, crawling slowly and surprisingly not so jittery, into the small carrying space Barricade kept for him.

Barricade snarled.

Ratchet growled.

And Optimus cleared his throat quietly, immediately catching everyone's attention. "Please, continue, Ratchet." His optics landed on Bella's form briefly, before he wrapped his good arm around Elita-One's frame and pulled her closer to him.

The femme commander looked more troubled by Bella's presence than anything, but said nothing as she handed Optimus a cube of energon and settled up against him. She seemed to have realized the femme was not a threat to her relationship with Prime, and though she was confused, she would not harm the girl. She had far more yet to learn.

"Yes, well... It appears they have an aversion to salt water, as we do."

"No slag, doc bot. Think about it a moment. If salt water rusts us into nothing, that's one thing." Sideswipe's optics were locked on his femme as he spoke. "They need us to travel and feed. If we're offlined by the salt-"

"Let me finish." Ratchet subspaced a wrench but took a good look at the twin's position next to the vulnerable femme and sparkling, and thought twice about it. Venting, he put the wrench down. "Yes, their natural aversion could be linked to ours except..." He turned peeling back one of the damaged chest plates.

Elita groaned in disgust, the only one to show a hint of emotion at what they saw, other than a brightening of the optics. "Oh _Primus_! What is that?"

"We're not certain. It appears to be an organic alien life form that has a parasitical nature, and has chosen the Decepticon force for hosts." He glanced at her briefly, before turning back to the umoving, _crunchy_ mass." From what my initial scans show, the creature seems to have...simply put, shorted out."

"Huh?" That was Sunstreaker's distracted question, as he barely glanced at the medibot, before turning his attention once again to Sunfire who was trying to wake her adoptive mother, to no use.

"Basically, we knew the creatures fed on electricity. I suppose it's more than that. It appears they can also _store_ it in their bodies. Thus, when introduced directly to salt _water_, the electricity within the creature's body...evidently fried it."

Now Barricade seemed to straighten. "So, in other words, to kill these things, we just spray the 'Cons with salt water?"

"It won't be that simple." Optimus' voice was quiet. As everyone turned to him, he vented, allowing his head to lower. "First, we must locate the Decepticons. Then we must come up with a plan to somehow corner their entire faction and then douse them all thoroughly with salt water. We'd need a battle field near the ocean. Surrounded by it would be the best option."

"The base."

Everyone paused, and even Optimus glanced at Barricade.

"Think about it. The base is on an isolated island. You've sent the civilians home. We're surrounded by salt water. All we need to do is lure the Decepticons here and get them into it."

"Without having any of our troops land in the water." Elita put in, eyeing him suspiciously. She clearly wasn't comfortable making battle plans with a former Decepticon, but one more encouraging look from Optimus and she nodded. "Well, that won't be easy. None of it. First, we need to get them here." She seemed to be following Optimus' lead more than anything. "Second, they vastly outnumber us. We need to find a way to make that work to their disadvantage."

"Do you think they're all infected?" Sideswipe had looked up, empty gaze on the others. Well, no, his gaze wasn't entirely empty at the moment, but the anger held within it was more than enough. "I mean, if there are _any_ left uninfected, maybe we can use the threat to divide them and maybe gain a little help?"

"Blackout can probably distract the Seekers, with Jetfire's help."

"We still have an unknown number of Decepticons to deal with." Optimus' optics were dim. "For now, let us focus on one thing at a time. Ratchet, how are the humans taking Rika's and Jesse's offlining?"

"They are preparing for what they call 'Closed casket ceremonies'."

He nodded. "Hm, I would be honored if they would allow us to attend. As little as any of us knew them, they were indeed our allies."

The medibot nodded, optics softening slightly in sorrow. "I believe Major Lennox requested we be present, if possible. Jazz has taken it upon himself to help out in any way he can. I also believe the 'civilians'-" He shot Barricade a look. "-have requested to return to help out with these ceremonies."

"We will also need to think up a cover story." Optimus' optics went to Barricade, when he noted the mech was staring quite intently at the floor. _**"It was not your fault."**_ He sent privately, not even blinking at the sour look he got.

_**"You set me up as guardian to Jesse Foster, and I failed."**_

_**"We had no idea this would happen. You cleared them from the battle field, no one could have known they would return. Barricade, I could also say it was my fault, for making you his guardian. Or it was the twins' fault, for not watching them closer. Or even Bella's-"**_ He caught the warning look, and nodded, ending that trail of thought there.

_**"Point acknowledged and ignored. I failed."**_

_**"It was an accident, Barricade. Accidents **_**do**_** happen. You do recall when Bella was captured? When she was in Sunstreaker's care? Or even that of Skids and Mudflap? You could **_**not**_** have stopped this. You did everything in your power. Primus must simply have another purpose for those two."**_

He only got a growl in response, and shuttered his optics, knowing Barricade wouldn't let up that easily.

"Wait, what about the shards?"

Elita's sudden question caught everybot off guard and they all turned to her.

"Think about it, if we're _all_ after the shards, they'll be after the ones we have. If we search and find more and bring them all to the base, the Decepticons will come _here_ after them. That takes care of how to get them here, right?"

Everybot looked around, impressed looks crossing their features, and Barricade snorted.

"If you ever get tired of Prime, I'd be honored to have such a smart femme for a sparkmate." The look he gave her was borderline lecherous, and with a warning snarl from Optimus, he chuckled, though it seemed strained. "Alright, so we have a plan for the 'how.' Now we just need a plan to douse them all."

"And we need to wait for Bella to be okay." Sides put in softly, once more drawing everyone's optics to the too still femme.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

I felt so heavy! I rubbed at my shoulders, pushing it off as a good, hard workout, before looking around. I smiled at the occasional person who eyed me, brushing off their fearful gazes. I probably should have noted it more, but I didn't.

As the red and blue bus pulled up, something niggled in the back of my mind, but it was gone again before I could process what it was, and I shrugged, before climbing in board.

_Oh! New bus driver! Cuuuute!_ I grinned a little, feeling shy, as I flashed my ID. However, when he glanced my way, the pain in his bright blue eyes made my chest clench, and an agonizing burning shoot through my heart. _Whoa!_ With a gasp, I clutched at my chest, just standing there and feeling my heart flutter wildly like a caged butterfly or something. _Weird._

The feeling passed, and I moved on to my seat, bypassing what looked like an odd river of glowing blue-ish green that dripped from a burn hole in the ceiling. A drop landed on me, and I shivered, before moving on. Grabbing a seat near the back, I looked out the window, watching as a blue Mazda raced past, being chased by a black and white Saleen Mustang.

"Ohh! Someone's in trouble!" I giggled to myself a little, before grimacing and rubbing once more at my chest. _Why do I keep getting the feeling something's..._

"Wrong?"

The voice made me jump, and I spun. Seeing Rika's face, I gasped sharply as a pain so fierce shot through me, I was certain someone had just stuck a live wire in my heart. I couldn't even speak. Hell, I couldn't _fricken breathe_!

Doubling up, I gasped for breath, my eyes burning as hot tears ran down my cheeks.

_What's wrong with me?_

"You're grieving, Bella."

Somehow, the fact that she knew what I was thinking completely bypassed the rational portion of my head. Instead, I managed somehow to give her a weak glance. "W-W-Why?" I gasped, crying, feeling like my world had ended.

"Because I died."

I blinked, her words not registering. How could she be dead, if she was _right_ there with me?

She smiled at me, a sad, soft smile. "Because we're in your head."

So she was a figment of my imagination, now? I was _so_ confused! However, because of the pain, which was so severe I was beginning to wonder if it would kill me, I couldn't ask.

It didn't matter.

"No, I'm real." She laughed, seemingly nervously. "Well as real as a ghost can get." Then she sobered, looking sad and put out. "I'm not gonna lie and say it's all peach-fragging-keen being dead. I mean, no more hanging out, or make overs, or pranks-Oh God, I'm gonna miss the pranks!" The sad smile was back.

_Why are you here? To torment me? You can't be dead. We're... We're on a bus!_

"-In your mind. Tell me Bella, does the bus look familiar? The pool of energon? How about the Mazda or the cruiser? You know what it all means. You have to go back." Her eyes glistened. "It's ok. I'm not mad. I'm just glad you're gonna be okay. I was _so_ scared when Boomer dragged you into the water!"

_Boomer...? Water...?_

She sighed, her eyes closing in an expression of pain. "You blocked it all out. Bella, it's gonna feel aweful. I mean, you're gonna wanna die, it's gonna feel so horrible, but you _have_ to remember!" She leaned forward then, staring at me intently. "You need to go back."

"B-But..." The pain only seemed to worsen. "I... You..."

"We'll meet again, probably, in like some afterlife." She grinned then. "Sound cliché yet?"

A flash hit me, and I suddenly found myself wrist deep in a Decepticon's chest. I remembered Decepticons and Transformers in general, but I frowned. "T-Thats just..." _...a movie..._

"No. You can do it, Bella. Come on." She pleaded with me in her tone, and her eyes. "Please remember. I know you don't wanna. God, if there was a way to send you back without the memories, I'd do it." Then she looked away, glaring. "Hey, rusty! You're supposed to be all powerful, aren't ya? So take the bad memories away!"

"It affected more than her."

My head turned to another familiar voice, and I found Jesse staring at me sadly, from seated next to... Wasn't that the guy from the movie? Something tugged in my head. I knew I should know him!

"Shia..."

Rika only whispered it, but my eyes widened.

**Flashback**

The nerd stood before his class, prattling on about his family history, and some...was it great uncle Witwicky? He pulled a picture of a pair of old fashioned glasses out then, and the scene changed to a bored looking, pretty brunette girl, sitting next to some football jock type guy.

**End Flashback**

"Sam..." I coughed a little, the distraction helping to ease the pain. Well, at least, when I focused on red-eyed Shia Laboef, it wasn't so bad. Whenever I looked at Rika or Jesse, I felt like I was literally dying, the pain was so horrible. "Y-You're..."

"Not Sam." His eyes shone with sadness. "And you know this." He looked to Rika. "I can't make her forget. I would, but the event has affected far more than simply her. To erase her memories, I would have to erase the memories of every Autobot and Decepticon who met you. And the humans... And I have very limited power around the humans, Rika."

"Bella, you have to remember. Look, it's okay." Jesse offered me a shaken smile. "We didn't even feel anything. There was a split second of pain, then it was all gone."

**Flashback**

A large metallic foot was coming down. It was going to step on something, but... I couldn't make out what.

**End Flashback**

The pain came again, causing me to curl in on myself. Groaning in agony, I choked on tears. My eyes turned to the ground, and I watched a large, clawed hand scuttle by, being chased by a little RC truck towing a stereo across the ground.

The sight was so odd, I watched the impromptu conga line as it swerved along the entire length of the now empty -but for Rika, Sam, Jesse and me- bus.

My eyes once again caught sight of the pool of energon.

**Flashback**

Without even looking, I blasted at the arms reaching for me.

**End Flashback**

"N-N-..." The pain was incredible. Each breath was a physical effort on my part, and they rattled through my chest, which felt like it was imploding under the pressure. The world faded in and out and nothing made sense. I didn't _want_ it to make sense!

"You know it, Bella. You know what happened."

Gentle hands took my own. "No one blames you, Bells. It was an accident. Accidents happen. It's gonna be okay, but you gotta go back." Her smile was grim. "You have parasitical 'Con aft to kick."

"Wow that sounds nasty."

She giggled at Jesse's comments, before turning to me and sighing. Her own cheeks had tears trailing down them. "We're okay. We're not in any pain or anything, and the First Prime promises us the afterlife is something amazing." She smiled wryly and rolled her eyes. "I'm still not sure how a _Cybertronian _spirit knows about a _human_ aferlife."

_Afterlife..._

**Flashback**

"RIKA! LOOK OUT!"

**End Flashback**

_OH MY GOD!_

With the rush of sudden memories, I felt like my world exploded in light, and I _screamed_! I screamed for all I was worth, curling up in a ball, feeling like I was coming apart at the seams. Not one _part_ of me wasn't in pain! I felt it from my head all the way down to my _toes_!

"BELLA! It's okay! I promise!"

Arms curled around me, and I curled up, both trying to avoid them and trying to curl into them at the same time. _Nonononononononono..._

"She's going into shock!"

"Slaggit!"

"Bella? Bella, please look at me!"

I rocked. I rocked and gasped, and slammed my eyes shut. I blocked everything out. _It'snotreal. No! No, no, no, no, NO! NO! NO! IT'S NOT REAL!_

"Damn it all! Do you really think messing with the minds of a dozen bots is the greater of two evils here? _Look_ at her!"

"I cannot help her! I cannot erase the memories of her human allies! I do not have that kind of power!"

"Do _something_!"

"What? What can I do, human? She has already retreated into her mind! Much further, and her grief really _will_ offline her! It is with our power alone she has not offlined already!"

"Can't you send us _back_?"

The question permeated through the fog of pain, and I lifted my head. I felt my eyes, wide. I looked up, though not really seeing. _Yes. Primus, or Prime, or whoever is powerful. He can send them back... He can send them back..._

"Not alone, I cannot. I must speak with the other Primes. This was not forseen." He looked sorrowful, staring at me. "And their bodies were...decimated. We would have a great deal to repair, and once again...our powers with humans are limited."

Well then... The answer to that seemed simple, and even as it crossed my mind, I could vaguely make out the First Prime's optics lighting up brightly.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Guess what?_

_...I'm not one of a kind, anymore..._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : March 9, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	90. Guilt

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Okay, no excuses. I've just been crappy with keeping up updates, but as I popped into to read some TF ffs, I thought I'd update while I was on. Here's the latest update, and thank you everyone who reviewed :)

Also having some issues with the editing on this document thing, so if the document file is off... It's NOT actually my fault...for once... -_-

Enjoy!

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Was this place really my mind? I suppose, all things considered, it made sense. Now that I was aware of the pain brewing in me, I just couldn't shake it. Even with the hope... I just... I felt it stick on some level, simmering, adding like a red shimmering haze to everything I saw. It wasn't so bad about Rika, once I got beyond my initial denial. I mean, it was so bad I could hardly breathe, but with the new hope, I found it tolerable, if barely._

_No, it was new pain and fear._

_It was the steadily dripping energon, and the horrible, burn hole in the bus. The memory of what caused it. The knowledge that, though he appeared to still be online, from what I remembered, I'd _hurt_ Optimus, who was only trying to help._

_Not to mention his _mate_ had been there, and had witnessed the whole horrible act._

_It was the clawed hand scuttling around, before it seemed to get fed up and spun, swiping at the vehicle and stereo on it's tail. It was the knowledge of the fact that, I'd actually, successfully injured _Barricade_ of all bots, and was still around to talk about it. That felt like a testament to how much he must have cared. The fact he hadn't offlined me the moment I struck him._

_I was filled with remorse, which quickly turned to horror when I clearly recalled everything I'd said and done. You might have expected the whole experience to be a 'black out' moment, where you barely and fuzzily recalled what happened, if you remembered at all, but not for me. No, I remembered every detail, and it relived itself over and over again, until the voices permeated through my subconscious, echoing audibly around the bus we sat in._

_Needless to say, it wasn't a very comfortable place to be._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(A Few Days Later, Normal POV)**

Optimus stood over the still forms, optics shooting from one to the other with a confused frown. "No markings?"

"None, and I searched thoroughly. They show no sign of Autobot or Decepticon insignias. In fact, I was able to artificially light their optics, and both were green. I have reason to believe they were neutrals."

"What does optic color have to do with that?"

Looking over his shoulder, Optimus laid optics on Major William Lennox, who was crouching in Ironhide's palm. "Neutrals were a small faction of Cybertronians refusing to have anything to do with the war. They refused to be 'branded' as they put it, and even went as far as to find a medibot able and willing to change their optic colors. They wanted no identifying marks to tie them to either faction. In fact, if scanned, I'm certain their spark signatures and internal communications lines would be on private lines not related to Autobot or Decepticon ones."

"Ohh, okay. So...how'd they get here?"

"From what it appears, the coordinates for Earth were programmed into their navigational systems. They both _appear_ to be fine, physically, but are locked in stasis lock. My attempts to online them have turned up no results." The troubled look on Ratchets face let them all know he wasn't pleased about this at all.

"Any sign of a parasite?"

"None."

There were two bots. One was a large mech, dark grey in protoform. He appeared to be lean in form, with long limbs, and young facial features. The other was a femme, slight, like Bella herself. Her protoform was more silvery, and again, her features were young. Both appeared to be, physically, young adults.

"It's kind of weird they show up right when we need help the most." Will mused.

Optimus vented. "However, as neutrals, they will not _want_ to help."

"They ain't got a choice." Ironhide's gruff voice brought attention to him, and his optics flashed. "With the way things are going, we're already looking into getting assistance from the other pathetic 'Cons. We'll probably need these two, as well."

"I _will_ ask them for their assistance and explain the situation, if and when they offline. Ratchet, you need recharge." The large bot's optics shot back to his medibot, who appeared to be suffering from severe exhaustion. When he saw Ratchet's optics narrowing, he narrowed his own and straightened, ignoring the way his wound pulled. "That was not a request."

"Isabella remains offline." The voice was low, and optics glanced over to the femme.

Everyone who heard him turned to her, to see her still. The twins curled around her, keeping physical contact as they recharged at her sides, and Sunfire had worked her way in between Sunstreaker's shoulder, where it curved over Bella's form, and Bella's steadily rising and falling chest plates, where she herself recharged, safe within the hold of her adoptive creators.

It would be a cute scene, if not for the tension rolling off the twins, even in recharge.

"Any change?"

"Her body convulsed recently. She appeared to be in agony, and her spark output increased to dangerously high levels. I was certain she was going to offline herself. I injected her with a sedative, but it took no effect for so long... I was almost ready to prepare to deal with the twins, when they lost her mate." Everyone turned to Ratchet at his grim news. "I was certain we would lose another good bot, however, at the last possible moment, the sedative seemed to have kicked in. She's been appearing stable since."

"Things will not be easy when she onlines."

"_If_ she onlines. Physically, she's strong enough to. I believe it may be a simple matter of not _wanting_ to." Ratchet vented once more. "All things considered, I can't begin to imagine the pain she's in now, or the agony she will be in after she awakens. Both physical, with all the shorts and burned out wiring I had to replace, and emotional." He shuttered his optics, turning away. "I do not envy her the burden."

"I guess it's lucky the bots blasted the creature into space dust, before it could get to her." Epps murmured quietly, probably thinking the bots couldn't hear him. "Or things would be a lot worse."

The Autobot Leader only spared him a quick glance, confirming that yes, they _could_ hear the humans, before turning back to the topic at hand. "That's why it will be up to us to attempt to assist her in carrying that burden. She is one of us. She is family. We will help her in any way we can." Optimus nodded firmly, sharing a glance with the other bots before turning back to Ratchet. "Now, get some rest, Ratchet. The twins will alert you if anything changes with Bella's condition."

"Yes, they'll probably pry my arms off in their desperate attempts to get me to her."

"Regardless.. They will alert you." With only the faintest hint of amusement, Optimus turned and slowly walked out of the room, leaving his weapons specialist and medibot to exchange worried glances.

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

"Bella, how many times do I have to tell you-"

_You can say it as many times as you want._ I thought, not even having the strength to speak the words audibly. It was almost comforting right then and there that I didn't actually have to speak. Though, considering the fact I wasn't watching my thoughts, I probably should have been more upset, or worried, or humiliated. _It doesn't change the fact._

Rika sighed from my side. "You know Optimus won't blame you. I don't know him as well as you, but from what I _do_ know, big bot's too observant. And forgiving. He knows it wasn't your fault. _Everyone_ knows it wasn't your fault. Hell, if it had been me, I probably would've attacked everyone."

I cringed, hearing my own shouts echoing in my head, and feeling the bus shake as a blast sounded around us. "I _did_."

A single glance out the window, and I shied away from the image. It was kneeling, straddling a large Seeker, hand plunged up to my wrist in his chest.

My wrist ached as I thought of it.

I sat there, glaring down at him with a cold sneer reminiscent of something Starscream himself could give. My optics were a deep, terrifying crimson, and with all the sparking wirings, and burn spots on my armor... I looked like something out of a Cybertronian horror movie.

I _felt_ like something out of a horror movie, and I couldn't help but mentally comparing myself to Starscream, before dismissing the image before it could literally form in my head.

There was only a second of hesitation, and I had a small feeling Rika was probably wincing. I couldn't bring myself to tear my eyes from the floor, from where I sat slumped in the corner, my face pressed firmly to the warm, humming wall of the bus.

"Not what I meant, and you know it. Bella, you showed remarkable restraint."

"I killed the bot." Sure, I probably should have been gloating. I'd offlined an enemy soldier. One of the big, possessed, deadly ones. I'd killed him. I...saved bots, didn't I? Wasn't that what war was about?

Still, I could feel the pulsing of his spark in my hand. I remembered the shrieks. Almost absently, I wondered if the 'Con inside the body was at all aware of what I'd done. I hadn't just offlined him, trying to protect someone, or even myself. I'd killed him out of vengeance. Revenge. Hate. Bloodlust.

I killed him...because I could. Because I had that power.

"Because you were falling apart. You didn't intend to crush his spark-"

"Yes, I did." There was no dry retort, or even half an attempt at laughter or lightening the mood. "I wrapped my fingers around his life source, and squeezed, slowly. I intended to kill him."

"That's what war is about." Jesse's soft words reminded me of his presence. "That's what everyone and anyone does in wars. They fight. They kill. It's not what they want, but they do it because they know that sometimes, in wars, killing is the only way."

"Kill or be killed." Sure, it made sense. The nastier of the 'Cons wanted to hurt us. Capture us, infect us, kill us. Running was no answer. They'd just get stronger and eventually hunt us down. Reasoning wasn't an option, either. Some bots just couldn't be reasoned with. "Doesn't make it any easier." I sighed, dragging my eyes from the floor to look over at Rika. "I didn't just _kill_ him. I hurt Sideways with ease, and that doesn't haunt me. It's the fact I _enjoyed_ it! I _tortured_ him. I was no better than a 'Con!"

"Don't you _dare_ talk like that!" Rika snapped angrily. "You're not a 'Con, and somewhere deep down inside, you know it!" Her eyes softened and filled with pain as another explosion rang out. "You were _broken_, Bella. You were lost. Terrified. I can _see_ and _feel_ what you did! You felt the pain coming, and you feared it would break you."

"I don't think any of us would have done differently." Jesse added, causing me to glance his way. "As an officer of the law, I'd always been taught to hone myself, never lose control. Feeling even a fraction of what you felt, I'm pretty damn sure I'd have done the same thing."

"Be evil?" I put in bitterly.

"Hide." He corrected firmly. "Run. Hide. Protect yourself. Turn off your heart and ability to feel, before the pain could wash over you and destroy you from the inside out."

"You saw the numbness like a warm, protective blanket. Humans turn to it more than often. Bella, you know this. What you did wasn't so bad. So you got angry and wanted to hurt those who hurt you. How is that any different from things you'd see and hear about on the news? You hurt a _bad_ guy, Bella. You killed a 'Con who was more or less dead inside anyways. You killed an emotionless being who only wanted to hurt you and the ones you love."

It made me think of the creature within the Seeker's body. It had taken over, effectively more or less killing the bot it was in, right? So wasn't that no better than a zombie? A possessed being? We had no way of getting them out, either. No known weaknesses.

"That's right, Bella. The Seeker himself couldn't feel what you were doing. The bot you tortured was one who wanted to use you for a food source. If you hadn't, it would have killed someone else. Maybe a friend. Maybe family. Maybe a total stranger." She paused a moment, before frowning. "Maybe your twins. Or maybe even Sunfire."

I felt a surge of rage flit through my body at the thought of Sunfire being in danger. I felt protective over my twins, sure, but they could fight to protect themselves. Helpless little Sunfire, however...

"If anyone _touched_ her..." I growled, before I felt my eyes widen, and the rage fled. "I don't wanna get mad."

"No, Bella, it's okay." Rika was kneeling before me. "You can get mad. You have control now."

"I lost control before. How easy would it be to lose control again? And I _didn't_ just kill a 'Con! I attacked allies, too! I...hurt Optimus, and Barricade! What must they think of me? And my twins... Would... Would they even love me anymore, after this?" I had become a _Decepticon_. No matter how briefly. Could they..._would_ they be able to forgive me?

"They'd be fools not to." The look in Rika's eyes had me pausing. "It was an accident, Bella. How many people out there attack friends in moments of panic? The only difference is you had weapons, but you didn't kill any allies."

"'Cept Boomer." I felt bad for that, but I knew it was necessity. Well, I didn't know if I'd killed him, but I did know I'd at least rendered him badly injured, if not completely offline.

"I was...possessed, as you humans would call it."

The new voice didn't startle me, though I suppose it should have. Looking up, I spotted the form Boomer had used as his holographic form. "If you're here..." I felt myself sink even lower against the wall. "You're dead too."

"The creature rendered me offline, Isabella. It seems salt water is as detrimental to their own health, as it is to ours. In a fit of agony and struggling to avoid the water, the creature crushed my spark. However, I felt nothing." He sat next to Jesse, across from me. "The creature killed me within my quarters, long before any of this. I felt nothing, and I can assure you the Seeker felt nothing."

_But Optimus... And Barricade..._

"Would not hold your act against you. No human or bot in their right minds would."

I glanced up at him, from where my eyes had fallen to the floor. "I hurt them. I blasted Optimus, Primus only knows how badly, and I cut off Barricade's hand! I remember the look in his optics! He hated me!"

"He hated the thing you had become, but you are not that anymore."

Suddenly, in a fit of anger, I lurched up. I ignored the sudden darkness outside the windows, and how everything around me began to shake. "_Why are you here?"_ I shouted, feeling near the end of my rope. "Why are you all _here_? To torment me? I know what I did was wrong! I can never take it back!" My eyes burned with the threat of tears. "Why... Why can't I just forget?"

"It doesn't work that way." Boomer's voice softened. "If we could all simply forget, we would. You are not the only one who has said and done things they regret. No matter what culture."

"And we're here to help, Bella. We want you to go back to your twins. To you sparkling. We want you to go back and kick 'Con aft, before anmore innocent people get hurt." Rika stood up.

The shaking subsided with my anger, but I looked at her sadly. "But I don't wanna leave you." I stepped towards her, feeling the tears trailing down my face. "I don't know what's back there. I don't know if...if I can handle it, but... I do know I can't handle it alone. I need you there, but you're here. I can't go back alone. I don't wanna leave you!"

Her expression softened. "No matter what happens, you know I'm always here. I'd never abandon you. Even if you can't see or hear me, know that I'm not in pain. I'll be okay. So will you." Her own eyes had gotten watery. "Come on, sis. You have your _mates_ and _sparkling _waiting for you. Will you really give all that up for _me_?"

I didn't know. On one hand, I wanted to be with my mates and sparkling. I felt so complete with them there. But Rika was the sister I never had! Even if we missed spending a lot of time together... No, especially because of that. I barely got a chance to hang out with her again, and now she's gone.

"It'll be okay, Bella. One way or the other." She smiled through her tears, before glancing up and over at Jesse, as the red headed officer placed an arm around her shoulders. "_We'll_ be okay."

"Yes. Yes, you will be."

Turning to the First Prime's voice, I spotted him standing in the shadows. He stalked forward, once again looking like his Cybertronian self, and a huge smile crossed his features. Suddenly, I didn't feel quite so scared. Suddenly... I felt more comforted and reassured. "They-"

"Agreed." He nodded, and the room began to lighten. "However, there is no time to explain. You will have to help them adjust."

"We're-?" Rika glanced over at him, eyes wide.

Jesse's expression was much the same, but filled with hope.

"Yes, you are. Isabella, I regret the pain you've gone through, but know that by human _and_ Cybertronian cultures, you have done nothing wrong. What you did to allies was an accident. No Autobot or Decepticon convert was offlined by your hand. Take reassurance in knowing you are _not_ alone, and you are not blamed for your actions."

Boomer moved to stand next to him, offering me a small smile and a nod of his head.

His smile only seemed to grow, and his optics flashed. "Now, it is time to go."

Suddenly, I was being pushed. No one was near enough to me to have done it physically, but I was flying backwards. The bus faded. Rika and Jesse and Boomer, and even the Prime all faded. Sounds, sights, smells, feelings... Everything went black.

* * *

**Written** : March 23, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	91. Welcome Back

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note**** : **Wow, I FINALLY get around to updating, and the site is giving me issues with editing the chapter. -_-

I've said it before and I'll say it again, no excuses for why I haven't updated sooner. Real life's been a glitch, then there's gamer's addiction, and then there's watching the TF series over again and getting struck with new muses.

Oh, and have I ever mentioned how badly I want to find Bay and roast his chesnuts over an open fire?

If I didn't hate the man before, I do now, and IFthere's a chance of a TF4, I'm willing to bet he's going to kill off Prime once and for all and bring in Rodimus. I mean, why not? He's already brutally murdered Jazz and Ironhide, and killed off Prime and Sam once each for the hell of it! Let's not even get into the mysteriously missing bots like Jolt and the Chevy twins, or the offlining of the _only_ femmes in the movies. -_-

Bay...you are _such_ a dick.

And enjoy the chapter peeps! I'm off to try working on yet ANOTHER TF muse. -_-

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_One minute I'm living the world's worst nightmare, and the next I'm finding myself held between two large, angrily and happily chittering Autobots. I'm being scolded and welcomed back, and threatened and cursed, and told I'm loved all at the same time. And the sad part is I only understand about half of it (the rest was guessing). Did someone forget to remind them I don't speak fluent Cybertronian?_

_For a few blissful seconds, I allowed myself to just bask in the warm, soothing embrace of my twins. My processor wasn't remembering what happened. I didn't _want_ to remember. Actually, I wondered for a moment if it _all_ had been some horrible dream._

_Then I heard other voices._

_I suddenly realized I was in medical bay, and I wasn't the only one there. Obviously. My twins are holding me so tightly, Sunfire has to find someway of wiggling herself out of some unseen nook or cranny, into the safety of Sideswipe's suddenly free hand, looking around in fear._

_Ratchet, on the other hand, is busy trying to pull the twins off me, all but screaming at them in Cybertronian, before switching angrily to English, demanding to know if I'm okay._

_But my optics land on the other two forms. The two forms with stunning green optics, who were looking around apprehensively, not bothering to move from their positions on the berths._

_Oh boy... I'm back. ...Now... What do I do first?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

"Slag it femme!" Sunstreaker growled, pulling me close. "Don't you ever fragging do that again, or I swear to Primus..."

I had no way of knowing exactly what he meant, but my mind immediately shot to when I'd shoved my hand through the Seeker's chest. "I..I didn't mean... He killed them..." My eyes filled with tears and I gasped as my entire body was wracked with pain. "I just snapped! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

The physical pain I felt was little in comparison to the emotional turmoil I felt stuck in.

"What? What are you on about?" He pulled back, and his glare brought my attention to him. "Are you on about the Decepti-creep? Pit, Bella! That bastard got what he deserved! Trust me. We were fragging cheering you on!"

It was my turn to pull away, as much as the berth would let me. Despite the agony rippling up my body, I fought free of him and Sideswipe, the latter being more preoccupied with keeping the tiny sparkling in his hand safe, and stood on shaky legs. "You _cheered_ me on?" I didn't know if I was more angry or horrified. "I was worse than a slagging Decepticon! I was _torturing_ him, and I _enjoyed_ it! I never _felt_ such hate and...and... I wanted nothing more than to _keep_ causing him pain!"

The expression on their faces shifted then. Gone was the concern, protest, and even the hint of amusement in Sunstreaker's optics. In it's place was a new understanding, and I felt it as it rolled through their bonds.

"Oh, Bella, no." Sideswipe shook his head. "You were never a 'Con. We know that."

"Don't be stupid!" Sunstreaker put in sharply.

Sideswipe shot him a glare, before carefully shifting Sunfire to a desk off to the side, and out of the way. "Stay there." He told her firmly, before turning to his brother and cuffing him upside the head. "And _you're_ not helping!" Turning to me, he stepped forward. "Bella, I'm so sorry. I can feel the pain in you. I felt it when he crushed your friends. You forget, we now know what you feel better than anyone else. If _anyone_ understands, it's us."

"_Everyone_ understands." Ratchet put in then, glowering at me. "But you shouldn't be up! I had to replace multiple nerve wirings and energon cables, and you're already straining them. Fraggit femme, sit down!"

"No, I can't." My mind spun. "What about Optimus?" I'd heard it from the First Prime himself, but I had to hear it from the living bots. "And Barricade?"

"Heh, Elita's not all that fond of you at the moment." Sunstreaker smirked. "But Prime's fine. Your aim wasn't fatal. It didn't even seriously wound him."

Sideswipe frowned a little. "Barricade's his same old grouchy self."

"No, he's not." Sunstreaker countered, ignoring the dirty look his twin sent him. "He's blaming himself for what happened to your friends. And he should." His optics narrowed, and an icy glare filled them. "He was to protect them and he failed."

My eyes shut as I was faced once again with the mental image of Rika racing into battle, and the sounds of her and Jesse being crushed. I couldn't help but whimper at the reminder.

"Oh, _good job_, moron!" Sideswipe snarled. "You're really feeling helpful today, aren't you?" He growled sarcastically.

"Would you rather I coddle her?" Sunstreaker snarled right back.

"Until she's gotten her bearings a little more? _YES_!"

"ENOUGH!" I shouted, my mind suddenly landing directly on the two other bots in the room. They had yet to move, but their heads and optics were trained solely on me. I kind of missed having them in my head, when we could just talk freely. I had no idea what they were thinking, and they no longer had access to my unspoken thoughts. "Guys?" I kept my eyes locked on the strange mech and femme.

I didn't recognize the forms. They weren't Autobot, and the optic color made me fairly certain they weren't Decepticon. One was clearly femme, with a small femining shape, and a more gently curved face. The other was mech, large, though still smaller than most of the other mechs.

"Can you... I mean..."

"Do you know these two?" Ratchet almost hesitantly walked over. "They are unidentified. They simply appeared in Earth's atmosphere, not long after...what happened in battle. They are also neutrals."

I looked at Ratchet a long moment. I hadn't missed his hesitance. "Do you...hate me?" I asked softly, dreading the answer.

He blinked at me, optics spiralling a moment. "Hate you? Why in the world would I hate you?"

"You seemed...hesitant..."

He vented hard. "Because I do not know what to expect." I cringed then, and he shook his head. "Bella, after what you've been through, humans have any number of ways to deal with it. Go into depression, into shock, have a mental break down, lose yourself in denial... I do not know what to expect from the trauma you have sustained."

"Good old Peppermint."

My head shot to the femme, even as a hand hesitantly reached out and brushed against her throat. Her mouth opened and shut a few times, and she wiggled her fingers, as if experimenting with them.

"Peppermint? Where did you hear that nickname?"

I couldn't help the way my heart leapt with joy, and I sure as hell couldn't fight the smile. I still felt guilty and like a grade A monster, but as the femm locked optics on me, the smile was literally impossible to ignore. "RIKA!"

She grinned. "BELLA!"

"JESSE!" The mech piped up then, in amusement.

We both turned to look at the mech, who gave us an almost sheepish look. He sat up slowly, and grinned a little, though he look overwhelmed.

"Sorry, I was feeling a little left out."

As if that was the magic phrase, I started laughing. So did Rika. And I think the two of us got him going. Soon, the three of us were almost curled up with laughter, leaving the other four bots in the room staring in confusion.

"Wait... _Rika? Jesse?_" Ratchet's head tilted. "But they were..." As if suddenly figuring it all out, he stepped back and landed heavily against the wall, leaning on it as if it were the only thing supporting him. "The two bots brought here... No wonder I couldn't online them, despite neither of them seeming to have suffered any physical trauma."

"Sorry, Doc bot." I grimaced a little, though I hardly felt sorry at all. Not for this, anyways. "Looks like you have two more bots to teach the Cybertronian ways to." I couldn't wipe the smile from my face as I gazed at my friends. At my sister, and the man I knew she cared about. Well...mech now. "It's _so_ different!" I told them earnestly, feeling somewhat alive again. "But you'll see, it can be a lot of fun as a Cybertronian." Then I felt more tears in my eyes. "You're really here!"

"But _how_ are they here?"

Rika glanced over my shoulder to Sunstreaker. "The First Prime and the Ancient Primes. They saw how much pain this caused all of us, especially Bella. It was Bella's idea though."

"Funny story..." Jesse smirked a little.

"Yeah." She giggled, glancing at him, before turning back to me. I couldn't tear my eyes off her. I was half afraid that if I did, she'd disappear again. "I'm really here Bella. We're both really here." She smiled at me.

"So the First Prime made them Cybertronian?"

"We wanted to come back, but the First Prime explained they didn't have _that_ much power over humans."

Jesse explained, as Rika held a hand out to me, and I took it, marvelling at the fact my sister was alive again. She died, but she came back. The Ancient Primes brought her back. For me.

I felt truly blessed in that single moment.

"Which explains why Bella turned Cybertronian when she came to us." Ratchet's voice piped in. "The only way to bring the two of you back was to turn you Cybertronian, I take it?"

"Our bodies were crushed." Rika grimaced. "Not a pretty reminder, but that's the past."

"Yeah." I nodded. "It is." Feeling a grip on my arms, and the feeling of strong longing, I reluctantly gave up my grasp on Rika's hand, and let the twins entwine themselves with me. I found Sunfire being presented to me, and I smiled a little as I picked her up, holding her against me.

She cooed and curled into my grasp, holding onto me as tightly as her tiny arms could, and my twins curled around me.

I sighed, content for the moment. I had my sister back, and she didn't come back alone. I had my mates, and my little adopted sparkling. I was home again, and for just that one perfect moment, everything felt alright.

Then the doors shot open, and Optimus dashed through, with Jazz on his heels.

"Two of da shards have gone missin'!" Jazz reported, before being drawn up short. "Bella! Yer online!"

His voice registered in some small part of my mind, but my eyes were locked on the much larger form of Optimus Prime. He stared at me, more out of shock and concern than anything, but I'd never felt more intimidated. My eyes landed on his chest, searching, but I saw nothing. Where had I hit him?

"Bella..." Optimus' booming voice rang through the room.

"I believe I can explain the missing shards, and I don't believe we have a need to worry. However, shall we all step outside and give Optimus and Bella a moment to catch up?" Ratchet put in.

"Problem!" I glanced over as Rika raised her hand. "Two of us don't know _how_ to 'step outside'. A little help, please?"

He vented. "Fine. I'll carry Rika. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe, you help Jesse." He stalked over and picked her up with ease, causing her to yelp a little, and cling to him the best she could.

"We're not leaving our femme, old bot!"

There was a low growl, and I felt the twins stiffen. I was once again gazing at Optimus, feeling trepidation around him, so I had no idea if he gave them a look, or spoke to them privately, but I suddenly felt them both reluctantly pulling away, annoyance and concern rolling through the link.

Lowering my head, I closed my eyes. "It's okay, guys. I... Whatever happens, happens for a reason. If Optimus choses to punish me, I deserve it." My voice cracked and my eyes burned. "I attacked allies."

"Femme..." Sunstreaker's voice was a warning growl.

"There will be no punishment." Optimus projected his voice through the room, and I glanced up hesitantly, afraid to meet his optics. When I did, however, I was surprised to see nothing but understanding. "I understand it was an accident, Bella. I do not hold you to blame."

"You should." I shook my head. "I could have just as easily offlined somebot."

"But you didn't." His gaze never wavered.

And I couldn't look away. Not when Sunfire was removed from my grasp. Not when I heard the others leaving, and realized we were alone. I felt the hot tears as they rolled down my cheeks. "I'm sorry, Optimus! I'm so sorry!"

Without even waiting for an answer, I rush forward. Bad move, I know. I'd attacked him last time I was conscious. A large part of me expected to be thrown away, or shot at, or something, so to have my sudden hug returned with just as much intensity... It shocked me.

"I have told you I do not blame you. No bot in their right mind would blame you."

I huffed a shaky laugh. "You sound like the First Prime."

He hummed a little. "I'll take that as a compliment." He rumbled in amusement. "So tell me, Bella, are you well? I cannot understand the pain you must be in, but when I entered, you were...smiling. Is this something I should be concerned about?"

"Rika...Jesse..." I was trying to word it right, but I just didn't know how.

"I _am_ truly sorry for your loss, Bella. Know that I am here for you, if you wish to speak."

I pulled away and looked up at him, only to see pain and concern in his optics. The look was touching, but the fact that he didn't understand was slighly amusing. "No, Optimus, they're alive."

He blinked at me, tilting his head a little. He appeared to think about it, but the longer he seemed to do so, the more I began to get concerned.

"Optimus?" He blinked at me, focusing. "Please don't glitch." I gave him a small smile. "Remember the missing shards?" It all made sense to me. When he nodded, I sighed and again struggled to think of how to word it. When words escaped me however, I decided for just a simple, straight forward answer.

"The First Prime used them to bring Rika and Jesse back to life." I paused. "I think. I mean, they're like me now." Then I pointed to the door. "They're the new bots."

He glanced at the shut doorway a moment. "The two unnamed neutrals..."

"Are Rika and Jesse."

"I am not certain I understand."

"Well, when he brought me here, the First Prime used a shard to change me. I'm guessing, since he said he didn't have too much influence over humans, that he used the shards to turn Rika and Jesse Cybertronian, like me. That way he could influence them more, and bring them back. Only he needed the help of the Ancient Primes to do it." I wondered if that made as much sense to him, as it did to me.

Or if it made any sense at all. Wow, I didn't know how to look at it, really.

He frowned a little, before laughing slightly and shaking his head. "I believe you might well be spending too much time around the bots." When I glanced at him blankly, he shook his head again. "What I meant was, I do not understand the purpose to their being brought back."

Now I thought about it a moment. "I think...they did it for me." My voice lowered to a whisper, and I turned my back to Prime, walking over to my berth and sitting down on it. "I was in..._so_ much pain. I think... I think I remember the First Prime telling Rika it was literally killing me."

Optimus hissed sharply, a sound I wasn't used to him making, and when I glanced up, he was staring at me with open worry. "Bella-"

"Don't you see? I think they brought my friends back to help. Help us all. Help me to keep living and survive the pain their deaths caused me. Maybe help us in this war." I suddenly froze, eyes widening. It hit me like a ton of bricks that while I'd been unconscious, and then spending my time going on about my personal issues, a war that threatened billions was still waging. "What's going on with the war? The creatures?" _Oh Primus! I can't believe I let that slip my mind, even for an instant!_

Optimus vented, moving to sit on the berth across from me. "We have found a weakness to the creatures, however finding a way to use it against the Decepticons, without Autobots possibly being caught in the crossfire, has proven to be impossible."

_Weakness... I remember..._ "Boomer said the creature reacted badly to salt water and crushed his spark." I murmured, glancing away as I thought, and turning back to Optimus after. "Salt water? But that's dangerous to Cybertronians, too."

"Yes. We have decided the best course of action, considering our situation at the moment, would be to somehow bring the Decepticons to the base, for a final confrontation. They are after the shards. We have the shards. We also now know of a fatal weakness."

"Yeah, but if Ratchet was right, and they're all connected, _they_ know we know." I frowned, my mind swinging fully onto the battle. I still felt weak, and everything hurt like hell, and I felt...oddly just heavy. Maybe it was the guilt still nagging at me. Either way, when I focused on the battle, I found it easier to handle it all, so that's what I did. "And the salt water is just as damaging to Autobot systems. I mean, what good is it if we douse them with salt water, if we're taken out at the same time? How did you plan to deploy it?"

"That is the issue we need to work on." Optimus stood, nodding his head. "My men and I will work on the plan. You will need to rest, Bella. Undoubtedly, Ratchet will require your assistance acclimating your friends to our world." He smiled then. "I am truly relieved the Primes were able to help you." Bowing his head, he leaned forward and startled me with a hug. "Welcome back, Bella."

I hugged him back, feeling my heart lighten just a little bit. "Thank you, Optimus."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_This was it, wasn it? The final battle would soon be upon us. _Were_ there any Decepticons remaining uninfected? If the commanders of the army were already slaves to...whatever this thing was, were there any others left? If they agreed to help, _would_ they help?_

_They had a plan to taunt the Decepticons into coming to the base, a plan to turn rogue Decepticons on their leaders, and knew the weakness of the infected bots._

_Now...to get Rika and Jesse walking and fighting, and then to find a way to successfully get the bots into the ocean without risking any of _ours_._

_This was _not_ going to be fun!_

_-Bella._

* * *

**Written** : March 25, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	92. Silverbolt

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_A week. Seven days._

_Let it be said that, when they put their minds to something, my friends got it done. Jesse and Rika were out and about, mingling with amazed bots, within seven days. They were walking the walk, transforming the...form... Jesse had chosen to be cruiser number three, chosing a more average, blend in, Ford Crown Victoria. Rika..._

_Well, this was a shock of a shock._

_I don't know if I ever told Rika the details of the third movie. I remembered telling her that there'd be new bots in the next movie, and generally that there'd be a red Ferrari, and a blue Mercedes... Wheeljack had taken on that Mercedes form, by the way. But when Rika chose her form, I took a moment to try and figure out on my own if it was some form of joke, or what._

_Of course, when asked, she just said she'd always liked Ferraris. Maybe I shouldn't have been surprised._

_But I definitely had some explaining to do, when the bots spotted the red Ferrari 458 Italia darting around, uncertainly._

_Really? The Ferrari was _her_?_

_...Wow..._

_-Bella_

* * *

**(Bella's POV)**

It totally sucked I wasn't there to help Rika and Jesse out more, with their newfound abilities and, well...size and makeup. Unfortunately, Optimus had detected one more shard. This one, also unfortunately, happened to be located in the very mall Sam and Mikeala were supposed to be watching a movie, and then having dinner in.

I had a bad feeling.

Damn these feelings.

This time, not only were my twins sent with me, Lennox and Epps were going in undercover as civilians, so as to try and not scare the people in the store. The plan was to locate Sam and Mikeala, and get them out safely, while at the same time having someone locating the shard.

With all their practice in using their holoforms, the shard was up to the twins, as long as they could promise not to start trouble. They weren't happy, but promised. Sam and Mikeala were up to me, thanks to my experience living in the human world.

And to make matters worse, there was a Decepticon signal in the area that no one recognized, nor could they find it. From what they could tell, it was coming from _inside_ the mall, which was just...ridiculous, right?

...Right?

I mean, it's not like they had a drive through anywhere in there!

But as we pulled up to the mall, I couldn't shake this feeling. There was something I was missing. Something hanging just at the tip of my processor, that I just couldn't nail.

"You okay?"

I glanced over at Sideswipe, seeing the concern in his holographic eyes. I couldn't help but stare a moment, before blushing and smiling. "Have I ever told you how pretty your eyes are?" It was random, but for some reason I just felt like I had to get that out.

They were such a vibrant blue, they glowed in the dark, if you looked close enough. They were clear as a cloudless day, sharp and piercing, but filled to the brim with emotions.

They were identical to Sunstreaker's, but for the emotions thing. The yellow twin always seemed to hold that part of himself back.

Sideswipe laughed a little, with a carefreeness that made me frown. "We're about to embark on a dangerous mission, with allies probably in a _lot_ of danger, and you're commenting about my eyes-What?" The laughter faded from his expression when he glanced my way.

"You don't look like anything about this mission bothers you. Doesn't it bother you?" I felt oddly distracted, and I couldn't explain _why_, which was almost as troubling as all this to begin with.

He frowned back. "Yes, this bothers me. I don't know Sam very well, but from the little I _do_ know about him, including his actions in Mission City, he's incredibly brave. He is a human to be respected." He seemed to pause, thinking. "And liked. I want to see him and his sparkmate safe."

He gazed at me long and hard, and I could feel both twins searching our link. They probably felt the distraction and troubling feelings rolling through me. "Bella?"

"I don't know." I turned to the mall again, the night time making it harder to see into the shadows. Luckily, my eyes adapted, but there was still an eerie sense about it. Like something out of either a horror movie, or some cop show where someone was about...to...

It slammed into me like a ton of bricks. I suddenly had a mental flashback to the day of the update at my apartment, and what I'd told Optimus. Gasping, I felt the twins suddenly poking more firmly at our bond, and knew they knew something was up.

"We have to get Sam and Mikeala out of there!"

"That's your job, Bella. Unless you need our help."

"Frag 'if' she needs our help!"

I glanced at the radio. "No." My mind was working a mile a minute. "We still don't know what the threat is, or what it's after. You two, we can't risk the shard, either. You go after it. I'll head after Sam and Mikeala and let you know if anything's up."

"I don't like this, Bella. You feel afraid."

Nodding, I offered Sides a tiny, shaky smile. "Yes, I do, but I'd feel afraid and nervous as hell with any mission. I can do this." I looked him right in the eye, begging him to understand. "I _can_ do this."

There was a growl over the radio. "Fine, femme, but take Lennox with you."

Shaking my head, my frown deepened. "He and Epps need to set up the perimeter, and try to locate any threats."

"Take _one_ of them, or we're going with you, whether you like it or not."

It was my turn to growl, my fear burning away into ever growing annoyance. "I'm not a child!"

"Then stop acting like one!"

"Then stop _treating_ me like one! You're acting like I can't take care of myself!" I winced then, my eyes falling shut as memories slammed into me. "Are you forgetting what I did when that 'Con stepped on my best friend?"

The cars were silent, but I felt Sideswipe's hand sliding into my own, and squeezing.

"That's different." Sunstreaker scoffed. "That wasn't you, and this time none of your friends were offlined."

"So you're saying I'm helpless unless I'm out of my mind with rage?" The annoyance shot into sharp anger, and I pulled away from Sideswipe, almost slamming his door into the car next to me in my haste to get out. _**"Let's do this."**_ I all but ordered, firmly ignoring the twins as they protested my sudden leaving.

I walked into the front door of the mall, bypassing several people. Feeling a grip on my arm, I spun and glared at Sunstreaker. "Do you really wanna cause a scene? Here? Now?" I hissed angrily.

He glared right back, not the least bit put off, but almost reluctantly released his grip on my arm, and sighed. "Fine. Have it your way. But if _anything_ happens, you had better call for us. Primus help me, femme, if you don't-"

I felt some of my anger fade away, and nodded. "I understand Sunny." I smiled at him, before the nervousness came back. "Now, let's get this over with, before I lose what's left of my nerve." That probably wasn't the best thing to say, because his eyes began to narrow again. Before he had a chance to voice whatever thought was rolling through his mind, however, I was gone.

I weaved through the crowd with a practice, the feeling almost soothing. I felt almost as if I was going to meet Rika for a movie, ourselves, though I knew better. The crowd had thinned remarkably since the day time, but there were still easily a couple hundred people within the building.

Which was why 'setting up the perimeter' for the boys was heading to opposit exits, standing next to a fire alarm each, with the soldiers stationed outside, and waiting for the emergency signal. Which in this case, would probably be me screaming over the internals 'NOW! NOW! NOW!'.

Either way, I slipped into the crowds, having to take a second and look around, in order to locate the right escalators to take me close to the theatre. It had been so long since I was last at this mall...

Finally locating it, I quickly stepped on.

Then the voice behind me startled me.

"What's the mission?"

Jumping a little, it took my processor a split second to identify the voice. I turned, and blinked at 'Uncle Phil'. "Hey, you're the-"

His eyes narrowed, the bright blue a stark contrast to the different shades of dark brown his skin and hair made up. "I sensed a Decepticon."

"Wait, if you're here, why aren't you with Optimus?" He was on Earth. He'd helped me. Twice. So he must have known I was an Autobot. And the color of his eyes generally told me he wasn't a 'Con, since they just liked black or red holographic eyes to match their optics... _Yeah, I sound like some weird Cybertronian fashion magazine!_

He glanced away, but a slightly nervous look crossed his features. "I am...the only Autobot flier I am aware of, on Earth."

"But not the only flier on their side." I winced a moment. "But you probably don't know that. A couple of the Decepticons joined the Autobots, including Blackout and Jetfire." Then my eyes narrowed. "Wait, flier?" I looked at him closely. _An Autobot flier?_ "Your name wouldn't happen to be Silverbolt, would it?" It felt like a stupid question, once it was out.

His eyes narrowed again, and he glanced at me sharply. "How do you know-"

"I know a lot." I cut him off. "And if you're, I don't know, afraid to go to Optimus, or whatever, he needs you _now_ more than ever. He needs all the allies he can get."

He looked about ready to reply, but his eyes darted past me. He gestured for me to turn around.

I did, and yelped embarrassingly as my foot caught at the top of the escalator. I stumbled, but a tight grip on my arm kep me from falling. Glancing back, I felt my cheeks warm. "Sorry, and thanks."

He tugged me after him, and began walking. "Why is now so important? Has something happened?"

"Yeah, you could say that." I bit my lip, nervously. I could feel the twins poking at my bond, and it took a moment to realize I was cycling through numerous emotions, all of which they could feel. Excitement, nervousness, confusion. I was torn about what to say and what not to say. "There's a...final confrontation of sorts, going on soon."

"Why are you here? I came here after a single Decepticon presence."

It took me another second to realize we were walking towards the theatre. Did he know I needed to come this way? "We came here because of the presence of the Allspark. Well, a shard of it." I didn't miss the way his head shot to me. "Remember in the museum, when you pushed me?"

"I saw that shard. With my own holographic optics. I sense nothing here." He was frowning deeply.

"Yeah there was some sort of recalibration necessary for that." I scratched my head. "I'm not Wheeljack."

"Thankfully. I would happily never get blown up again."

Despite everything, I couldn't help the small snort of amusement. "Seriously? You should tell _him_ that!" When he shot me another look, I sighed. Then, I cringed as I remembered my important mission. "Okay, long story short, the entire Autobot forces are planning a final confrontation, but two fellow Autobots followed me here to get the shard. I don't have time to explain the details. My mission is _really_ important, but if you can find Sunstreaker or Sideswipe, they can fill you in, okay?"

He stared at me, his expression blank.

"We really _do_ need all the help we can get. Even with the small group of Decepticons that joined us-" And his look stated he didn't believe _that_ just yet. "-we're still majorly outpowered and outnumbered." I began to back away, towards the entrance of the theatre. "I'm sorry I can't explain it more, Silverbolt, but I really _have_ to get going."

With a speed that startled me, he lunged forward and grabbed me. I didn't even have a chance to yelp, before I was pulled aside, into a quieter area.

The damn annoying thing about cities was that a lot of the time, abductions like this went uninterrupted. People might look, but if questioned later, all they'd be able to tell the police was 'Some white chick got abducted by some black dude'.

The case was the same in this matter. People turned and looked, but then turned away again, and continued on with their business.

"Silver-"

He glared at me. A look that basically stopped my processor for a second. I couldn't tell if he was suspicious, or what. Then a new worry caught my attention. I didn't know this bot that well. What if he _wasn't_ an Autobot? Or had switched sides?

"Wait, you're not with the 'Cons, are you?" I felt a spike of fear soar through me, and I felt both the twins automatically respond. No words were spoken, but I knew they were on the way. "Or...Or infected?"

His eyes narrowed. "Infected?" His glare turned into a look of confusion, before he flipped my arm over.

Considering it was my bad arm, I yelped as my wrist protested the movement.

He eyed the brace on my wrist, modelled to look like a regular human brace, used for strains and fractures. It was actually Cybertronian, and was permanent, but it could shift with me, thankfully. "You're damaged." He almost carefully picked at a spot in my arm, until he hit a small, hidden button that caused the skin to pull back.

"Hey!" I tried to pull away, feeling my anxiety spike. "What're you doing?"

"You said you didn't have time to tell me what was happening." He revealed the small data transfer port, and in a blink, had his own cable out.

It hit me then, and I found myself relaxing slightly. This was just a data transfer. Right? This was what Autobots went through? Still, the fear refused to fade entirely. Why did I feel violated? "Look, just get the twins to do a transfer!" I tried to pull away, and my fear mixed with annoyance. Why the hell did Cybertronian mechs have to be so much stronger than femmes? I mean..._really_? "Silver- You're hurting me!"

"Hey!"

The shout was both welcome and not. Welcome, because it meant my twins had found us, and were coming to my rescue. Not, because not only had they abandoned their mission, their shout was drawing attention that, considering what all was going on, wasn't all that welcome.

Still, Silverbolt spun to the source, his cable slipping back under the sleeve of his impeccable suit, and he released my arm, which I quickly pulled to my chest, cradling it.

"What're you doing to our girl?" Sunstreaker all but snarled. I had to be impressed with the fact he used 'girl' and not 'femme', but could have planted my head in a wall at 'our'.

Oh, the glances some people shot us all.

Though, to be fair, most were more intrigued than put off.

_Oh, very bad mental images! And at an equally as bad time!_

"I meant her no harm. She spoke of a 'final confrontation', and I only meant to gather more information about it."

"Against my will!" I snapped, feeling marginally more brave with my boys standing beside me. "I told you, you were hurting me!"

He looked at me, shooting the twins glances. I had no idea what he was thinking, but he abruptly nodded, before glancing at me. "You have my apologies." Then he turned, and walked off.

"Wait a minute, what about Optimus?" I clenched my wrist to me, feeling uncertain and still battling the last bit of violation running through me, and I leaned more fully into Sideswipe's side, but I still... We needed help. And an Autobot wouldn't purposefully hurt an innocent.

...Would he?

Silverbolt didn't even turn. He surprisingly smoothly integrated himself into the crowd, and all but vanished, in a matter of seconds.

"Let the slagger run. A moment longer, and I might have offlined him for what he tried to do." Sunstreaker's snarl was barely human, as he turned to me.

"He... He just wanted information."

"He had no right to force a transfer on a femme! Who was that?" Sideswipe had an arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me closer.

"Silverbolt."

"Silverbot? He's an Aerial bot."

"And slagged, if I ever see his face again!"

"Sunstreaker..." I sighed, hitting the button on my wrist to cover the spot, before massaging the area. Abruptly, I felt my eyes widen. "Crap! The shard!"

"We'll get it, but we're not leaving you alone now."

"But he's gone!" I turned wide eyes on Sunstreaker. "You can't be serious!"

"You felt violated, Bella." Sideswipe pointed out, darkly. "We'd never allow our femme to be harmed, and now we're not risking you again."

"I've already informed Optimus."

My eyes went from the red twin to the yellow, and narrowed. _When? I didn't hear..._ My eyes narrowed even more. _That fragger! He used a private comm! God only knows what he bitched about!_

"And what are you glaring at?" He snapped. "You were almost violated, even if you want to deny it. We are not about to allow even the slightest chance of that happening again, whether you like it or not!"

"I'm with Sunny on this, Bella." Sideswipe's softer voice did little to calm my nerves. "Optimus has okayed it. We're to go after the shard, after we've secured Sam and Mikeala's safety."

Once again, my mind turned to the mission at hand, and I suddenly felt like grade A slag. I'd been so preoccupied with the over-protectiveness of my twins, that I'd completely and totally forgotten Sam and Mikeala, who were nearby.

I also noticed, with a nice deep blush, that people were _still_ staring at us, like they were waiting for something.

Still feeling annoyed with Sunstreaker, I also felt a little bit...evil. Not in the totally go 'Con and rip the spark out of bots kind of way, but in the... Sideswipe's going to love me kind of way. Spinning to the red twin, I reached an arm up. "You're right. I love how you always keep a more level head, and can actually explain things to me, without making me feeling like a moron." I smiled, though I had a feeling the look was about as acidic as my tone.

Then, without waiting for a response, I leaned forward and pulled his head down at the same time. I planted a firm, fiery kiss against his lips, quickly dominating the kiss. I pressed against him hard, nipping at his bottom lip with a blossoming passion, and then had to pull back before I forgot where I was...

...Again...

The look on his face was more than worth it.

He looked completely dazed, his lips left in a puckered fashion, and amazingly, his bottom lip was a little puffy from where I'd nipped it. I loved just how real they could make their holoforms.

And if his look was any satisfaction, the annoyance and desire over Sunstreaker's end of the bond was a thousand times more so. I'd almost given in and turned, giving him the same treatment, before remembering I was supposed to be mad at him.

So with a slow, leisurely lick of my lips, I turned and sauntered into the theatre, leaving Sunstreaker feeling more than a little put out, and more than one set of eyes staring in shock at the show I'd just put on.

Maybe _now_ Sunstreaker would learn not to treat me like a child.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_'Hell hath no fury like a femme scorned'._

_Familiar saying, no?_

_Well evidently, 'hell also hath no fury like a _mech_ scorned'. Sunstreaker never let up on his desires for a good long while, and even bitched and groaned about the fact that Sideswipe had gotten kissed, and he hadn't. It took Sideswipe pointing out he hadn't shouted at me, and treated me like I was helpless, for him to evidently get the point._

_And then he started in on how I _was_ helpless in that situation._

_Winning brownie points with me?_

_Sunstreaker was so far in the negative, it would take a good few hundred years of ass-kissing just to get back to zero._

_And let's not even get into Sam, when I ran into him, and blabbed like a total idiot that Mikeala was in danger. Apparently, no one told him about the third movie, and when I even _hinted_ at it... Let's just say, the little nerd boy could get _quite_ scary at times!_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : March 6, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	93. Mikeala

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Sorry about the late update. Same old same old. LOL. Thank you all for your encouraging reviews. I will say this, I am less than pleased with the ending. It felt choppy, anti-climactic, and like I missed a few things, so I will apologize ahead of time if you are disappointed in the ending. 3 more chapters to go before this is over.

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Distractions, Distractions._

_I was on a mission, and yet, I still managed to stop and chat. I allowed myself to get distracted by Silverbolt's arrival and...what was up with him? Was he seriously about to force a data transfer, just for the information I had? Why couldn't he go to the twins?_

_Or...did it have anything to do with that suspicious look in his eyes?_

_My GOD! Why was it, half the time when I met a new bot, they automatically looked at me like they expected me to sprout tentacles and rip their sparks out? I was a freakin' Autobot! Complete with insignia and blue optics and everything! Couldn't they see that?_

_Oh boy...and here we go again, distracted._

_By the time I actually convinced the usher to let me in, stating it was an emergency; Even Will had to be called, to pull military rank and back my story up. By the time I got inside... That feeling of dread was about a thousand times stronger._

_And for good reason._

_-Bella_

* * *

"What?" I stared ahead of me, dumbly. I just couldn't process the words coming out of his mouth. I mean, I could see Sam. I could see his worried, confused expression. I could hear my twins cursing, Sunstreaker in Cybertronian, and Sideswipe in strained English. I could hear his words repeating in my head. I just... "No. She's here. With you."

Looking past Sam, down the isles, I frowned deeply.

"I think I'd know better than you where my girlfriend is." He laughed, the tone and nervous chitter taking the bite out of his words. "She-She just excused herself."

_She _just_ excused herself._ Immediately, my eyes widened. "Damn it all to hell!" I hissed, clenching my fists at my sides to keep from shouting the words and drawing even more unwanted attention than our little gathering at the back of the theatre was already gathering. "We _just_ missed her!"

"Slaggin' Silverbolt held us up!"

And my anger flew out the window at the reminder, once again replaced with dismay. "No. _I_ held us up. I took the time to stop and talk to him. If I hadn't-"

"Your signal didn't stop moving until the last thirty seconds before we arrived at your location." Sideswipe put in, glowering. I almost wished the look was aimed at me, but it wasn't. It was aimed at Sunstreaker, who returned the look, and only time among them told me they weren't glaring _at_ each other.

Sunstreaker bursted out with more staticky whistles and clicks, and almost as if driven by instinct, turned and left the theatre.

"Where's he- Where's he going?" Will turned to me, his own voice barely above a harried whisper. "We gotta get Mikeala and get her and Sam outta here!"

"I'll do it." The response was automatic, and _was_ instinctual. "I'm a girl. I can get in without questions." Turning, I almost ran to the doors, only to grimace when I spotted a man mopping the floor. He glanced at me, and I immediately crouched ever so slightly, almost slamming my knees together. "'Scuse me! Gotta go!" I yelped, blushing furiously, before darting past him. Not a very subtle story, but it would do. _I hate public bathrooms._ I mentally chanted, hitting the corner and running into the room. _And I hate 'Cons. Because without them, we wouldn't have to worry and rush around._

No sooner had the thought crossed my mind, when I froze. I felt once again like I was back with Rika, watching her get stepped on. The very blood drained from my face, and I felt cold.

Alice stood before me, in all her metallic wonder. Her ruby optics glittered with evil glee, so cold, Scalpel looked sane next to her. She held the bloody, beaten form of Mikeala in her grasp, and my eyes scanned the limp girl for any signs of life.

_No..._ My mind ran back to the preview for the third movie, and I think my spark stalled. _No... We were supposed to _stop_ anything from happening to her!_

_**"Bella? What's wrong this time?"**_ There was no hint of annoyance in Sideswipe's voice, only an ever growing trepidation. If he'd responded badly to my niggling bad feelings before, he was almost in a panic, now.

However, Sunstreaker? He was the very epitome of annoyance and mingled rage, with his concern just filtering through enough for me to know he really _did_ care. _**"SLAG FEMME! Do you **_**ever**_** not get into trouble?"**_

I didn't answer.

I couldn't answer.

I stared at the blood-covered face of Mikeala, her bloodied and matted hair covering her limp, downturned face. I watched as it dripped from her head, trickled down her throat, and dripped off her obviously broken arm.

_**"A...A..."**_

How'd she get in here? How did _no one_ see her? This was a public restroom in a _very_ popular area of the mall! How the _hell_ was no one running from here, screaming in terror, and drawing craploads of attention? Why hadn't we-

Then my eyes widened even more. _We _did_ sense her! The unknown Decepticon presence in the mall!_

But that still begged the question...

Mikeala wouldn't have gone down easy. How did _no one _know she needed help?

"Well, well, well..." She snickered, dropping Mikeala's limp form.

My eyes followed it as it hit the ground sickeningly, lying prone. Bleeding.

_**"Bella?"**_ The annoyance had faded from Sunstreaker's voice. Not completely, it was still there, along with a burning anger, but the concern was growing steadily stronger.

_**"Why haven't you replied? Is it Silverbolt? Is he back?"**_

My mind let out a tiny whimper. One my vocal cords refused to allow to slip through my lips. Of course, it filtered out through our link, and I felt my twins responding.

_**"Slag! It's serious this time!"**_

_**"Do you need back up? Is it Silverbolt? Fraggin **_**pit**_**! If it's Silver-"**_

_**"Alice..."**_ My mind managed to squeeze out. My head and body were cycling. They were warring between unbelieveable rage, like what I'd gone through with Rika, and a paralyzing terror. _What do I do?_

_Stupid question, duh! We take the glitch out!_

_**"Wait, Alice? The pretender? She's here?"**_

I could hear them, but I couldn't respond. They were just white noise in the background. It was like my mind had suddenly split in two. The more cognitive part of my mind was reeling, terrified for Mikeala, and terrified that any move or sound I made would get her killed. However, the more instinctual part of my mind was screaming to take the bitch out, who'd dared to hurt her.

I think the only thing that kept me from doing so was the memory of what had happened last time I lost control. The absolute terror of going back to that phase, kept me glued to the spot. Frozen. Terrified. Helpless.

Suddenly, they weren't talking on private lines anymore, and I could feel the other Autobots stirring in my head, catching my attention for less than a second, before Alice's movement had captured it once more.

_**"Where?"**_ Ironhide was suddenly alert.

_**"Bella's locator's reading near the theatre restrooms. Didn't she go after..."**_ Jolt never got the word out, before an outraged, horrified and thoroughly torn apart voice sounded so loudly, I'd be surprised if many bots' processors were left ringing for a long time after.

_**"MIKEALA!"**_

I could feel and hear the flurry as the Autobots seemed more stunned into action at the thought of Mikeala's life being in danger than by my own. I wasn't even hurt. _I_ could protect myself from a Cybertronian. She couldn't, as her prone form suggested.

_**"We're on our way!"**_

_**"We can't just bust in! Our sizes alone would crush them!"**_

_**"Mikeala!"**_

_**"SLAG! Someone get Sam outta here, before he finds out!"**_

"The little former squishy." Alice sneered, seemingly oblivious to what was happening in my head. She purposely stepped forward, crushing Mikeala's hand beneath her foot.

I lurched, feeling my control slipping. The terror still reined, keeping me frozen to the spot, but the rage was growing by the second. The urge to stop her from existing felt like a burning, nearly blinding tidal wave, bearing down on me.

_**"Bella! Get her out of there! Get her outside so we can crush her!"**_ Sideswipe was trying so hard to be the voice of reason, but I could hear the control slipping in his own voice.

_**"No, wait, how's Mikeala?"**_

Sunstreaker snapped._** "Go in and see for yourself! We want our mate!"**_

The ground trembled ominously, and part of my mind registered screaming behind me, however, the building didn't get torn apart.

_**"Get Sam out of here!"**_

Just as quickly, Epps and Will were there, speaking in a frenzy.

_**"We've got Sam, but we'll need a ride!"**_

_**"I have you. The rest of you, take care of the pretender."**_ Ironhide's voice was loathing and rage, but all business.

_**"Is medical assistance required?"**_

_Yes..._ My mind whimpered, shifting from Alice's stalking figure to Mikeala and back. I couldn't focus on Alice, despite knowing I had to. She was a threat. She was the enemy, but... Mikeala needed help.

Like..._now_.

"I should have expected this. You're...what? Their key to beating us?" She stepped forward again, leaving Mikeala's body behind her. The sneer never left her face. "You come along, and suddenly Starscream wants you. Then the Decepticons change, one-by-one." Suddenly, her expression darkened. "So what _did_ you do to them?"

_Do to them...?_ The question flew right over my head.

It felt like I was dying inside. Mikeala hadn't even flinched or whimpered when her hand was crushed. Did she even feel it? _Was_ she capable of feeling anymore?

"Answer me!"

Alice was in front of me then, and before I had a chance to respond, a solid hit to the side of my face sent me flying. My vision spun, and I gasped as pain ran up my body. I was...vaguely aware of the sound of rocks tumbling, and things hitting me, but I was still so confused. It took me a few moments to realize I'd been knocked through a wall.

I didn't even know or care if I was hurt. Only Mikeala was on my mind. _I have to get Mikeala out of here! She has to be alive. She has to be alive!_ The longer I stood there, frozen, the worse the rage got. Now it wasn't so much fear of my reaction causing Alice to kill Mikeala that kept me frozen, as it was fear of losing control and being a more direct cause of her death.

I wanted to transform and literally squash Alice like the bug I saw her as, with no conscious thought to what kind of danger that would put Mikeala in.

_**"Bella! Okay, Jolt, You know what? I'm generally a nice mech, but I swear to Primus, if you don't let me go, I'll rip your mother-fragging spark out of it's Pit-spawned chamber, and shove it so far up your aft, you'll flash anyone you smile at!" **_Sideswipe was snarling now, sounding almost as dark as a Decepticon.

_**"You'll only get in the way!"**_

He screeched. _**"My **_**mate**_** is in **_**pain**_**!"**_

There was a roar then. Alice had approached me, demanding more answers, but before she could bend down, the ground shook once more. Only this time, I watched, fascinated, as a seam tore along the edge of the ceiling. I watched, dazed, as it spread, before fingers slipped under it.

Just as quickly, I was staring up at ruby optics and a starry sky, and I gasped. I was shocked into motion, for a split second, convinced I was staring at a Decepticon. Before I had a chance to think about what I was doing, I bent my knees to my chest, and lashed out with all my strength, kicking Alice in the stomach.

The Decepticon pretender gasped, looking shocked, before she went flying.

I didn't even wait to see how badly she was hurt, or if she was hurt at all. I was on my hands and knees, then lurching to my feet, and I was running, skidding to a stop next to Mikeala's form.

There was so much _blood_!

My mind spun. _Medical... She needs medical!_

There was a sound of an enraged roar behind me, and a rather female scream of agony. Metal clashed on metal. The possible Decepticon was gone from my mind, however.

_I need... I need..._

Sounds of small explosions rang out behind me, and then I jerked as something hot and wet hit me with a final, choked female scream. The small jolt seemed to shake me from my daze.

_**"JOLT! I NEED JOLT!"**_

No sooner had I mentally screamed his name, so broadly over every channel, then a blue hand swept down and scooped up the limp girl. Before I had a chance to react, to jump or feel threatened, I felt a hand coming around me as well.

And I panicked.

"LET ME GO, YOU SLIMY, PIECE OF RUSTY, USELESS, SCRAP METAL PISS ANT!" I screamed, struggling. Not wasting a second, I quickly triggered my transformation sequence, feeling it as the hand fell away from me.

_**"Calm the frag down! For God's sake!"**_

I landed awkwardly, and spun, only to have my legs taken out from under me by a blow to the backs of my knees. Yelping in surprise, I fell, only to be caught and lifted. Glancing up, I spotted the red optics. Then, before my spark could drop to my toes, I noted the yellow framed face, and familiar grip I was being held in.

As quickly as the tidal wave had begun washing over me, it dissipated, leaving me feeling empty of anything but terror and agony. "Sunstreaker..." My eyes widened. "Mikeala! Alice- She! She got Mikeala!"

"She's alive, but we need to get her back to the base immediately! Ratchet is more versed in organic medicine than I am!"

My head spun to Jolt, seeing it as his holographic form shimmered into view, and he began to carefully and gingerly remove gauze, bandages and tons of medical supplies from subspace pockets, and began to wrap her up to the best of his ability.

I whimpered, my own pain nothing more than an uncomfortable tickle in the back of my mind. _This is all my fault._

"Are you hurt?" Sideswipe's voice was filled with static, almost raw sounding as he approached, his own optics an angry violet.

I didn't even register him. I watched Bumblebee, clutching Sam in his free hand, as the young scout almost hesitantly approached jolt.

"MIKEALA!" Sam's eyes were wide, and the pain in them...

Turning away, I buried my face into Sunstreaker's chest, struggling not to cry. _I_ wasn't hurt, but Mikeala was. And I felt it was all my fault, too, because I'd stopped to talk to Silverbolt. If I hadn't stopped... If I'd told him right away to go to the twins, he never would have dragged me off, and I could have gotten to Mikeala before she went to the bathroom.

I could have completed my mission, getting Sam and Mikeala to safety.

It should have been an _easy_ mission!

How the _frag_ did I manage to mess it up so horribly?

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_I couldn't bring myself to speak. I felt thoroughly beaten. It was far worse than ever. The ride back was tense. I felt like I was in a trance. I felt empty. Like nothing but a shell. Devoid of life, or emotion. My twins didn't like that, but nothing they said or did made me feel any better._

_I rode in Sideswipe, just because Sunstreaker's pushing made me feel like I would shatter like glass, and maybe _just_ offline. It seemed Sides realized that, too, because I blocked Sunstreaker from my head, and he seemed to block him from speaking through the speakers._

_And I wasn't the only one that blamed me._

_Bumblebee refused to look at me, once we'd arrived back. He held his charge, who was almost in shock, stroking Sam's back and cooing wordlessly at the boy. Sam for his own part kept shooting me looks. I didn't know if the look of betrayal was meant or not, but at that moment, it felt about right._

_Me, the girl that seemed to know everything, _hadn't _known this was coming. I hadn't _warned_ them. An innocent person, a _friend, _had been critically injured, and this time I _could_ have done something._

_As soon as Mikeala was taken to the emergency room, followed by Sam and Bumblebee, Optimus called for a mission. I was supposed to be a part of it, but I only looked him in the optics, before turning and stalking off to our quarters._

_I didn't stop to pick up Sunfire, who was reaching for me from Rika's new form; not that I didn't notice her, but I think she felt my pain, because moments after we locked optics, keened in a way I couldn't handle . I didn't stop when I heard Rika calling for me. I didn't stop until I hit the berth, the pain of the unforgiving metallic surface the only thing that registered in my mind. O__nce I was there, I curled up, and I let my spark shatter. I allowed myself to cry, not caring if the tears never stopped again._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : April 30, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	94. Focus

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : I almost didn't get this chapter uploaded. Wow, talk about issues. I don't know if it was my computer or the site, but...arg! Anyways, I'm alive. Physically. Mentally? Not so much. Sorry about the lateness of my update, as usual. I've been having a crappy time with keeping track of time. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Primus smiled on us once more. _

_Mikeala would be okay. At least, as long as the medical bay remained in one piece long enough for the life support machines to allow her body to recover a little. That meant Sam had to leave, before he tore the place apart._

_For days, he sat on the beach, outside the base fence line, staring blankly out over the water. And for every moment of that time, Bumblebee sat with him. _

_He let his charge recharge in his arms, though the sleep never lasted long and was frought with nightmares. He didn't recharge at all himself, holding Sam, playing whatever music the boy wanted, and cooing at him occasionally to remind him he wasn't alone._

_I couldn't talk to them._

_I wanted to._

_I wanted to, so very badly, but I couldn't. I was...admittedly afraid. I was afraid of the looks I'd get. Of what they'd say. Do. How they'd react. I knew Sam had to hate me, even with Rika and Sideswipe assuring me he didn't. For that matter, I wondered if Bumblebee hated me._

_He couldn't have helped her, without risking hurting her. I could. I didn't. I froze._

_I let my panic overwhelm me, and now she had to pay the price._

_My only consolation?_

_She wouldn't die._

_Was it much comfort?_

_Surprising, yes. It was just enough to back off the feeling of wishing _I'd_ offline. Just...a little, anyways._

_But it didn't help with the problem I realized I had._

_She needed me. I didn't help her. Couldn't. The others... They _might _have been able to do _something_, if I'd called to them sooner. I didn't. I didn't even think of it._

_I froze._

_In the heat of battle._

_I... I needed help, and for once, I didn't know who to talk to._

_-Bella._

* * *

**(Several Days Later)**

I'd finally ditched Rika. Either spending time around Jazz was wearing off on me, she was getting sloppy, or Primus was doing me a favor. Either way, I felt about at wit's end, and her constant 'encouragement' wasn't helping. I didn't want to hear 'they don't blame you' over and over. I just needed...to be alone.

Maybe that's why my twins had given me space?

...Nah.

Sunstreaker isn't the kind to respect personal space. Hell, if he could, he'd spit on 'personal space' and then drop kick it back to Cybertron! Sides...might respect it, if it wasn't someone close to him, and they weren't clearly suffering.

So...where _were_ my twins?

Patrol.

A newly adjusted Prowl wasted no time in taking up his position as Second in Command, and considering the nature of the turn of events, he immediately decided to step up base security. Ironhide was working harder than ever with the new soldiers, training them to the best of his ability, and Jolt and Ratchet's spare time was split between Rika and Jesse, Sunfire's care, taking care of Mikeala, and treating any injuries sent their way.

Needless to say, they kept the human doctors and nurses very busy. The very same doctors and nurses who only weeks before were feeling useless, with the abilities of the Cybertronian medics.

That left me alone, to wander about aimlessly and wallow in my guilt and worries. At least, until Barricade noticed me. As soon as I spotted him making his way towards me, I turned around and tried to walk away.

"Stop right there, femme." He growled.

As if by instinct, I paused, despite the fact that I didn't want to. Feeling a claw on my shoulder, I turned towards it, sighing, and forced myself to glance up into Barricade's optics. "'Cade..."

"Stow it. You've been nagged by guilt over what happened." It wasn't a question. "You didn't beat the organic femme yourself. In fact, you intervened and probably saved her life."

"I froze, Barricade." Shaking my head, I frowned. "When Mikeala needed me most, I was... I was afraid." My optics burned and I looked up at him. "I was afraid of losing control, like I did with the seeker who c-crushed R-Rika." Shuddering, I took a deep breath. "I was terrified I'd hurt Mikeala even worse, or lose it and attack a friend."

"Hmm understandable."

I felt his claw clench and turned to it. "I'm... I'm sorry about your hand, 'Cade. I didn't mean to hurt you."

His reaction surprised me. I guess I didn't know _what_ to expect, but for him to laugh wasn't it. "You did, femme. You meant it completely, at the time, but I understand. You were out of control, lost in unbelievable grief, and saw all that approached you as a threat." Suddenly, his laughter was gone. "I...know that pain far better than you might expect."

"Speedster?"

He nodded, optics darkening. "I felt betrayed and went on a murderous rampage. Megatron found me prowling around, offlning any that dared even look at me wrong. I attacked him, and the only thing that kept him from offlining me, was the potential he saw in me. He didn't hesitate to use it to his advantage, teaching me to focus the agony and rage I felt." His optics turned to me, and Barricade abruptly smirked. "So all you need to do is focus your rage."

"Focus..." My head tilted as I regarded him. _If I focus on the 'Cons..._

"Focus your anger, and use it." His optics glinted and he shifted. "And you will make them regret ever crossing you." Then his optics shifted past me. "Care to train?"

"Aren't you afraid one little old femme will kick your aft?" I teased, starting to feel a little better. Pausing, I examined him a little. "You know, I never would have expected a former 'Con to give good advice that wasn't basically 'Kill everything that moves'."

He snorted a little, glancing back. "Isn't that what I said?" He blinked, the look startlingly innocent.

Laughing a little, I shook my head. Looking at him once more, I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. "Thanks...big brother." Giggling, I pulled back, noticing how rigid he'd gone, before turning. "So... We gonna spar or what?"

We didn't get the chance.

Nor did Barricade even have the chance to reply.

No sooner had the question slipped out of my lips, than alarms began blaring around the base. For a moment, I froze, looking around wildly. I was looking for the source of the threat, spotting the soldiers as they ran with great haste to military vehicles, and weapons bunkers.

"What's going on?" I turned back to Barricade, who hurried over. "What's wrong?"

"We're under attack." His optics flashed.

It hit me then that I'd tuned out the internal links. Sometimes it was just overwhelming, listening to the bots communicating privately in my head, and so I had to tune it out to deal, and by now, it had become a really bad habit of mine. I had to make an actual conscious effort to tune them back in, and the news hit me like a ton of bricks.

_**"Decepticons inbound!"**_

_**"Where? How many?"**_

_**"Lots! I'm sensing at least a dozen, and more keep appearing! They seem to be flying in, by air!"**_

_**"But wait, aren't at least half the Decepticon forces land bound?"**_ I felt my eyes narrow as I suddenly interrupted the conversation. _**"Dead End. Barricade. Soundwave. There's tons of 'Cons that can't fly. How are so many coming in by air?"**_ It didn't even hit me that the 'Cons I'd named had all come to this island, on our side, with the exception of Dead End, who only pretended to be our ally.

_**"Slaggit, femme! They've got unknown parasites within them! We don't **_**know**_** what they're capable of anymore!"**_

_**"Enough, everyone!"**_ Optimus' tone was stern, and he was clearly in his role as Prime. _**"This is not the time for arguments. Ratchet, there's a medical ship awaiting at the docks. See to it non-military humans are aboard, including any injured or sick. That includes Sam and Mikeala."**_

_**"And Sunfire!" **_I piped in, _feeling_ the agreement through the links of most of the bots.

_**"And Sunfire, and Hopper. Ratchet, I will need you and Jolt to accompany them to assure their safe passage, along with Bumblebee." **_Before anyone could protest the fact he was thinning our already thin ranks even more, I watched Optimus Prime step out of the hangar, standing tall with narrowed optics facing the sky. _**"Ironhide, make sure the troops have their new rounds deployed."**_

_**"We haven't had a chance to test them, and make sure the salt water content won't interfere with the firing mechanisms."**_ It wasn't a complaint so much as a warning. I could tell it was Ironhide's way of saying 'We're not sure what's going to happen, so watch your afts'.

The new weapon? Salt water-filled sabot rounds. Wheeljack's work. Luckily? It was basically a shell mixed with salt water, designed to shatter on contact, hopefully _after_ the shells punctured the armored plating. In other words, no real mechanics required, and a very low chance of it blowing up.

I all but ran over to Prime, feeling very nearly in a frenzy. "Rika and Jesse are barely used to their bodies. And what about me? I'm not trained for this. I _froze_ with Alice!" Despite Barricade's earlier words, I just couldn't help but panic. Focusing my power against one Decepticon was one thing. Having to attack, watch my back, watch the backs of my allies, and focus on not hurting them all at once...

I felt very much like I was taken out of the frying pan, and suddenly tossed face first into the fire.

_**"Rika and Jesse are also to be placed about the ship."**_ He put in, as if it was an after thought, before he turned his optics to me. "Do you believe you can handle this battle, Bella? We need all the assistance we can get, but I will not force you to fight."

"Of course not." I offered, bitterly. "You're the ever kind and generous Prime. Heaven forbid you should just _tell_ me what to do!" I looked up at him. "I don't _know_ what to do, Optimus! I've never fought in a battle like this before! I...I'm scared! I know you need the help, but I'm afraid I'll be more of a liability than an asset!"

_**"Bella, we're on our way to you." **_Sideswipe's voice came through, and I could sense my mates' urgency through their links. _**"We'll head to the transport together."**_

_**"We'll see you off."**_ Sunstreaker clarified. _**"But Prime needs us here."**_

"I cannot make this decision for you, Bella." Optimus put in grimly, staring down at me with worry. "You have mates and a sparkling who need you."

"And if we lose this war, we're all fragged anyways." I retorted hotly. Okay, sure, Prime hadn't done anything to deserve my sudden attitude, but I wasn't kidding when I told him I was terrified. I really _was_ scared. I couldn't see myself fighting in this battle. Like I said before: One 'Con? Sure. A dozen?

...

_**"Count's up to fifteen confirmed so far."**_

Okay, that wasn't _so_ bad. Sure, the 'Cons were mostly a lot bigger than us, and probably stronger than a few bots who'd remain nameless for the time being -me included- but we still outnumbered them over all. Well...humans included that is, but they've been known to take down Decepticons on their own before.

_**"Prime, I've managed to secure a key piece of information that may assist in our offlining of the unusual organic parasite." **_Wheeljack's voice suddenly cut in.

_**"As long as it doesn't include firing a piece of experimental equipment that's more likely to explode in our faces than actually **_**work**_**, we're up for anything." **_Came Sunstreaker's snarl.

_**"Not now!"**_ Sensing my mates, I spun on Sunstreaker. I just did _not_ have the nerves to deal with this now. _**"Bitch and moan all you want, but we all know Wheeljack comes through when we need him most. Go ahead 'Jack." **_I heard a commotion behind me, but as none of the bots spun and began firing, I didn't deem it a threat. Still, I glanced behind me, almost instinctually, watching as Rika and Jesse argued with Prowl and Elita-One.

"We're not going!" Rika was all but screeching.

_**"As far as I can tell, these creatures have a sybiotic relationship with each other. The ones we've faced appear to have been merely drones, following the command of a larger, more powerful creature. I believe if we can find and offline **_**that**_** creature, it will in essence kill the others in a chain reaction."**_

I turned to Prime, watching his optics brighten. "Kill the brood mother, and her offspring go with her. All we have to do is _find_ her, or _it_, or whatever. What about the bots they're attached to, though?"

"I don't know about you, but I'd rather deal with damaged and confused Decepticons to super strong, mind-controlled Decepticons." Sideswipe put in, frowning behind us. "And I don't think your friends are too happy with their orders."

"Wanna bet, oh Mistress of Bitchiness?" Came Rika's snarl.

"Excuse me?" Elita's voice was also rising.

She and I got along as comrades, but not outright friends. It seemed like she didn't understand that I had mates, and wasn't interested in her Prime. She was polite enough, don't get me wrong, but whenever I was around Optimus, she had to be in physical contact with him.

Then again, with her time away from him, that could have just been a side effect. Maybe an insecurity.

Either way, I turned and dashed over to them, before Rika could say or do anything to get her ass handed to her. "What the hells' going on here? We're under attack! Now isn't the time for bickering!"

"We're not going!" Rika spun to me, eyes flashing. "Your Prime, or Primus, or whoever did this to us for a reason. We can walk and talk, and Ratchet's been all but overworking us with these stupid data things! What good are they if we can't even use them?"

"It's a _battle_, Rika! Like, the big, climactic, final battle of a movie!" I snapped, eyes widening. "This isn't the time or place to be proving yourself!"

"You need all the help you can get!"

"And what about Sunfire? She'll need someone to protect her, too!"

"She's going with the medical transport! They have protection!"

"...She needs family, Rika..." My voice softened as the fear once again settled in.

Her eyes softened, but she shook her head in determination. "We're not going." She repeated, stubbornly. "Sunny has Bee and Dr. Minty, and even Big Blue!"

_Big Blue?_ Raising an eyebrow, I decided not to touch that one, all things considered. However, I did recognize the look of determination in her eyes, and sighed in defeat. "Okay, fine, but you follow Prime's orders. He's the Autobot Leader for a reason y'know." I was a bit confused about Silverbolt's lack of appearance, but now wasn't the time to question it. Maybe he just didn't realize what was going on, or that he was needed, or that a massive battle was about to go down.

Even if he wasn't technically _our_ Prime, we were Autobots now. We fell under his protection, and by proxy, his leadership. Not to mention, we didn't know _what _we were doing, and he could guide us to where we'd be most useful.

"Bella-"

I didn't even turn. _**"No. I'm not going either."**_ I was afraid. I was _so_ afraid, but even as the count seemed to go up, and even _my_ sensors were picking up on the distant 'Con signals, I knew I had to stay. Maybe it was a foolish need to prove myself. Maybe I just knew they needed _all_ the help they could get.

Maybe it was the fact that my family was staying here to fight. Rika. My mates. The closest things I had to brothers. Everyone I knew since coming to this dimension would be remaining here to fight. As unlikely as my being much help in this battle seemed, I just _couldn't_ imagine myself not as a part of it.

Although... So much for getting untouched Decepticons to help us. _Were_ there any untouched 'Cons left?

As if sensing something in my tone, my twins fell silent. I could feel their feelings through our link, projecting just how unhappy they were with this arrangement, but they didn't argue.

"Bella. I would have you, Rika and Jesse escort the civilians to the transport, and make sure they get aboard safely. You are to protect it until it leaves port, and then remain on the base outskirts, firing on the enemy from a distance. I will not have you on the front lines, with your lack of experience."

"Well...it's better than nothing." Rika put in.

Jesse breathed heavily, his nervousness showing in his green optics, but he nodded. "Got it, Prime!" He saluted, as if it was some weird instinct, before shaking his head. "My God, I've been spending too much time on this base."

I giggled, though it was more a nervous thing than anything. With a nod in Optimus' direction, I transformed into my vehicle mode, followed by my friends, and led the way towards the docks. I could hear Ratchet's sirens going, and homed in on them, squealing around the humans awkwardly, until I caught sight of the flashing lights.

On his ass in an instant, I remained behind him, so that I didn't risk running into humans. He didn't say a word to acknowledge my presence, but I spotted Bee zooming up beside me, and Jolt joining our small ranks from behind. We made our way to the docks, and Ratchet boarded without hesitation, followed by a few humans, including at least half the medical staff and a few spare soldiers for protection.

Jolt followed him from behind, but to my surprise, Bumblebee opened his door, letting Sam out, before transforming. His sudden action startled me so much, I transformed as well.

_**May the force be with you...**_ Came the wise and all too familiar voice, as Bumblebee stared at me for the first time since the incident with Alice.

"I'm sorry!" I blurted, as he picked up Sam, the human staring up at me from haunted eyes and a ghostly pale face. "I froze with Alice, but it won't happen again! I promise! I'm so sorry!" I bowed my head.

"She'll be okay." Sam's voice was rough. "I remember you saying before that I died in the second movie. And that there were rumors of Mikeala being killed off for the third. I guess this wasn't exactly what you saw?"

"No. None of this should be happening." I shook my head, stepping aside as more civilians came rushing through. It really did surprise me just how many civilians were on the island.

"Well, she's gonna be okay. And I'm fine." Sam seemed to be thinking. "I just... I just n-need her to wake up." His eyes watered, before he shook his head and looked up at me. "Be careful, Bella. I-I don't blame you." He offered a weak smile before patting Bumblebee's hand, and as if by some unspoken word, the small yellow scout put him down. With a wave to us, he turned and darted on board the ship.

Then, to top off today's surprises, Bumblebee carefully stepped forward and gave me a hug. "B-Be c..car-carful." His voice was only the slightest bit less rough.

"You too." I murmured, hearing a coo. As Bumblebee pulled back, his chest plates parted, and I spotted my sparkling inside. Just looking into her optics, I couldn't help the watery smile. Tears started pouring as the fear ate at me just a little bit more, but I also couldn't fight the smile itself. "And you take care too, sweet spark. Please, Bee... Keep her safe."

He nodded, gently pushing his chest plates closed over her, before transforming and boarding the boat.

Rika wrapped her arms around me from behind, as I listened to the captain calling a final boarding call. "It's gonna be okay." She whispered. "We'll all be okay. We just need to focus. If we can find the brood mother tentacle monster, we can take them all out."

"What if it's not here?"

"Then we track the fragger down." Her voice darkened. "And we put an end to this war, for good."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Focus._

_That's all I was hearing today. 'Focus this', and 'Focus that'. Focus my rage on my enemies, and take them out. Focus on the brood mother. Focus on the mission at hand. But how can I focus, when my heart feels like it's literally torn? I felt a large piece of it go with Sunfire on that boat. My twins each held a piece, and were split up at the far corners of the island, and ordered into communications silence so they had a better chance of getting the drop on the enemy._

_Though...if we could sense them, couldn't they sense us?_

_Most of the bots were ordered to strategic locations, near deep bodies of water surrounding the base, and all were probably praying for victory._

_Then there was the piece with the general bots, and another piece with Rika and Jesse. By the time it got down to the battle, I was feeling more like a lifeless shell than a living being. Did I even _have_ a heart left at this point?_

_And _how_, exactly am I to focus, when all I can think about, is if everyone else is okay?_

_If the fate of the world at all depends on me, I can only guarantee you one thing._

_We. Are. So. Fragged._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Written** : June 2, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	95. Over

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note **: I will honestly say I have no excuse for the lack of updating. We were hit with the tail end of a tornado last week, that kind of put me in shock, because there's nothing like looking out your kitchen window and seeing the wind and rain whirling around like it does at the base of a tornado, and then seeing the rather frightening amount of damage this hour long storm caused all up and down streets.

But that was about the biggest thing to happen to us, and the rest of it has been crazy schedule, laziness and distractions. Sorry! One more chapter after this, and thank you for sticking it out with me so long. :)

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_The ship was out of sight by the time the Decepticons finally made a move, and by that time, I felt oddly calm and focused. I have no idea how I managed it, but I'll tell you one thing, I'm _not_ complaining! The Decepticon count finally stopped at twenty two, with them outnumbering us by at least half a dozen._

_Not good odds._

_Especially considering the moment they landed, we noticed they all had the oddly blank eyes and tentacles waving around in the air. Prime gave one command about not letting them have physical contact... Yeah, because I'm going to go up and what? Shake tentacles hello?_

_Eww..._

_As they landed, however, the battle ensued. The more practiced of the bots, and the half-hidden human militia had begun firing away, drawing the attention of the Decepticons, while the younger generations stayed hidden, picking moments they thought were key to fire hopefully critical shots._

_As if by some unspoken agreement, Rika, Jesse an I split up, spreading out more while staying hidden and taking pot shots. I think maybe we all had the same idea. Now, to see if it did any good. And to see if we could remain hidden from the Decepticons who broke off from the main ranks to try and find us._

_Where was divine intervention when you needed it?_

_Or backup Autobot troops for that matter?_

_-Bella_

* * *

Sidestepping around a cluster of young trees, I kept low to the ground. Part of my mind screamed at me to transform into my human mode. I could hide a hell of a lot easier if I did, but at the same time, another part of my mind was telling me that if I did, the trees would block out the visual locks I had on the closest Decepticons.

Most of the 'Cons I didn't even recognize. I could see how they got to us, however. It seemed the parasites had grown big and strong in their hosts, and had somehow connected to each other. The flier 'Cons took the 'back' of the massive Decepticon combiner they'd formed, for the trip, acting as the wings and propellers that kept them in the air.

Once they landed, however, they separated and broke apart in a way that was beyond creepy.

_Where is it?_ My eyes scannned the forms writhing in the flames as blasts littered the base. My heart pumped frantically in my chest, and it was only through deep, meditative breaths that I could keep breathing at all. An explosion near me caused me to jump, but I bit down on my tongue to keep from yelling in surprise and fear.

My eyes automatically shot to the sky, to a Decepticon who was flying, and firing. They were taking pot shots as well, though not as cleverly, since they had nothing to hide behind up there. Raising my own blaster, I aimed, before second guessing my target.

_Blasters don't work on most areas of the body._ My mind reminded me, before I re-aimed. I fired a blast and ducked down, almost thankful for the fires all over the place that would hide my heat signature from them.

The 'Con's propellers stopped functioning, and a bot that looked remarkably similar to Blackout transformed and landed.

"Slag!" I cursed quietly. For a split second, I almost called an apology, thinking I'd shot Blackout down, before the Decepticon turned my way, and I spotted eerily blank optics. _Okay then. Not Blackout._ I aimed my blaster as his optics landed on me.

Then, as if out of nowhere, a small, lithe, cat-like Decepticon leapt out of the trees, scaling the Decepticon's body with ease, before a cannon transformed out of it's back, and it blasted him in the face. Just as quickly, Ravage leapt backwards off the 'Con, flipping in the air as he landed near me.

"Thanks!" I hissed quietly, getting a nod and a strange, metallic purr in response. I could only stare as Ravage rubbed against my leg silently, optics glinting, before he took off into the trees, firing at the 'Con to distract him. _Be safe. Primus, please keep them safe._ I mentally begged, as the 'Con turned his back to me.

Seeing a tentacle slithering between his armored platings on his back, I growled to myself and fired at it quickly. The screech the bot let out, only confirmed Wheeljack's earlier comments about symbiosis, because at the same time, other Decepticons seemed to stagger, or shout.

I grinned then, a new sense of smugness hitting me, and if it wasn't for the ordered radio silence, I would have shouted it through the internals. _Weak spot!_ "Ravage!" I hissed quietly, ducking down and rolling to the side, hiding behind a bunker. I looked around wildly. "Ravage!"

It took the panther-'Con a moment to arrive at my side. "What?" He hissed quietly.

"Oh, so _now_ you speak." I snarked, before grinning. "Weak point. They're symbiotic." My voice was a low whisper. "Injure one, and you'll distract the others, at least. We need to get the word out." I couldn't believe no one else had figured it out yet. Or maybe they had, and because of the radio silence, I was just the last one to understand.

He nodded, crimson optics glinting, and smirked a very fangy smirk. "Understood." He bowed his head, before taking off.

The excitement was almost as overwhelming as the adrenaline, mixed with fear. Was this what all battles were like? I found a weak point, and soon others would know about it, too. As long as we exploited it, maybe this wouldn't be so bad! Spinning around, I peeked around the building. _Now... To locate the brood mother... _Was she-he-_it_ even in this battle?

My eyes scanned each of the bots.

_If she's the leader of them all, wouldn't she take the leader of the Decepticons as a host? The strongest one?_ My eyes landed on Shockwave, who was brushing aside Prime like he was a flea. Jetfire intervened then, saving Optimus from a tentacle to the optic, and blasted Shockwave aside. I raised my cannon, eyes scanning Shockwave's form carefully for any sign of weakness.

Then, my alarms flared. I suddenly sensed a presence behind me, that hadn't been there a moment ago, and even as I spun, the excitement vanished with an alarmingly quick poof as a hand clamped around my throat with frightening speed.

_"Hungry..._" The eerily haunted voice sounded.

If I could have, I would have gasped sharply. The bot I found myself facing was the absolute _last_ bot I expected to see on the battle field. My legs kicked futilley as I was held off the ground, and my body began to heat as the oxygen was cut off to my oxygen tanks, causing my fans to falter.

"Bella!"

I choked, staring in new found terror and helplessness at the bot before me. _Oh my God... I think I found the brood mother..._ I grasped at the arm holding me, digging at it in a vain attempt to get it to let me go, even as I stared at the bot. The bot that was easily a match for Optimus in size, and right now? Was probably three times stronger than him. _Crap! Oh double crap! Triple crap, even!_ I gasped, choking.

Blasts rang out then, but he barely flinched as they only seemed to singe his armor.

_Oh, frag this!__"__**Don't! Only Optimus can beat him!"**_

_**"What?"**_

_**"Frag! The Fallen!"**_

Through my terror, I was confused. I was _so_ certain Shockwave was the Decepticon leader. Where was The Fallen before all this? And if this thing could control him-

Suddenly, a sword flung out, and neatly cut through The Fallen's arm, severing it. Slick, black ooze dripped from the limb, and dozens of small tentacles writhed as he screamed, the sound echoing for miles in a fashion that would give all who heard it nightmares for life. It looked like the fallen was filled with giant maggots, and I felt nauseous just looking at it.

I hit the ground, but before my jelly-like legs could give out, hands were reaching out. Red arms ripped the limb from my throat, while yellow ones wrapped around me, pulling me away from the threat. At the same time, more blasts sounded. I could hear echoing screams coming from the other bots.

But my eyes were fixed to the creature before me.

Patches of the armor were soft, shiny, and looked slimy in the dim light of the day. It flexed in ways metal couldn't have, as The Fallen staggered back, tentacles sliding out of his arm to reach down for the severed limb, connecting to and lifting it in the air. I watched, horrified, as the limb re-attached itself. This wasn't _just_ the fallen.

"Well, that's not good." Sideswipe stood in front of us, blades ready.

"Frag, that's nasty!" Sunstreaker hissed, a blade blocking in front of me.

Tentacles waved from every crack and crevice on The Fallen's body. His optics looked like they'd fallen off, strange, glistening teeth oozing black ichor in his mouth. This... This wasn't a Cybertronian, like you'd expect. This looked like some strange, zombie-like hybrid or something. This had to be the brood mother. It _had_ to be. The Fallen was one of the strongest bots out there, and it seemed to have perfect control over him.

"Stand back!" Optimus was suddenly in front of us.

"You can't take it on alone!" I argued, struggling weakly against Sunstreaker. In truth, I felt...incredibly weak right now. More so from fear, than actually being hurt. I was afraid. So afraid, I felt like I was chilled to the bone, so to speak, and paralysed with fear.

But something in my head kept saying I had to do _something_. No idea what, mind you, but..._something_.

"How'd he beat The Fallen in the movie?"

"With Jetfire's parts." I shook my head. "And even then it was more of an equal battle. Now The Fallen has a parasite in him! He's gonna be even stronger! Especially if that's the brood mother!"

Speaking of strong. I watched as Optimus lunged forward with his twin energon blades dripping with a mixture of energon and black ooze. He slashed repeatedly at The Fallen, who dodged half the attacks, and took the rest without batting a robotic eyelash. Where the sword actually cut into the softer, fleshy armor, The Fallen screamed, but then the tentacles that wove around on his body straightened and shot at Prime.

And to my horror, I saw sparks flash from where ever they struck his armor, gouges being dug from the 'limbs' that otherwise looked so soft.

"Damn it, that's new!" Will was at our feet with Epps, firing their sabot rounds behind us. "Anyone wanna stop staring and help us with the rest of the 'Cons?"

As if suddenly remembering the other 'Cons, I turned and looked over Sunstreaker's shoulder, feeling my heart drop even more. We were _so_ outnumbered. Multiple bots were injured, though I hoped they weren't infected, and only two of the Decepticons appeared to be offline. Of course, many more were also injured and the entire lot seemed to be off balance, but they were still there.

By now, radio silence was all but moot point. Any Autobots who _had_ been hiding were out in the open, half of them sounding worried as they struggled to rationalize the fact that our side was taking more of a beating than the other side. Even as we broke apart, my twins staying near me as we circled around, trying to find a good vantage point to attack from, I watched as Prime took more blasts than he was giving.

The Fallen's one hand had turned into a shiny, slimy blade of some kind, that cut through Optimus' armor with shocking ease. Optimus, for his own part, was already bleeding heavily from numerous injuries.

"Stay here!" Sunstreaker hissed, pushing down sharply on my shoulder.

Yelping, I had no choice but to kneel down, hidden by a cluster of bunkers, but I glared at him for the action, swiping his arm from my shoulder. "We need to help Optimus!"

"You said it yourself, he's the only one who can beat The Fallen!"

"Yeah, but if he doesn't get help, even _he_ isn't gonna be strong enough!"

Then, as if summoned by my desperate thoughts and cries, blasts rang out. I could only watch, fascinated, as they slammed into The Fallen, who staggered back, seemingly more shocked than actually hurt by the sudden barrage. I turned my head, and I could have laughed with joy.

"It's Silverbolt!"

He led a jet towards the island, both firing on The Fallen from teh sky, and our own troops seemed to take that as the initiative, opening fresh fire on the distracted Decepticons. My twins, without another word, turn and ran into the fray, and I turned, taking my own chance.

I remained hidden by the buildings, but aimed my blaster at The Fallen, targeting his joints more than anything. That seemed to get more of a reaction from him, and I fired on his shoulder joints as he staggered back. My heart had yet to settle, as Silverbolt and the unidentified jet flew overhead, hitting the edge of my sensor range, before turning and heading back.

Then, Optimus lunged upward. He slid his blade through a fleshy part in The Fallen's armor, right through his chest plates.

We all froze then, instead of an explosion, or the bot collapsing, his optics flashed black, and he locked fingers tightly around Optimus' throat.

_"Hungry..."_ He moaned in his eerily empty voice.

The horror slammed into me almost as hard as the terror from before. _His spark didn't react... How did his spark _not_ react?_

Optimus ripped his blade to the side, practically tearing the protective armor from the chest, and I had my answer. Instead of a brightly glowing spark centered in the middle of the chest, there was only a large mass of organic flesh. The thing had no eyes or mouth. It just looked like undulating, pulsing flesh, of a sickly, undescribable color.

The thing screamed and bled, but it healed right up again as well. I watched the flesh mend itself, and struggled not to gag at the sickening sense flowing through me.

He shoved sharply back, slamming Optimus into one of the dock storage sheds, and it was only the building beneath them that kept either of them from plunging into the icy water below.

I gasped sharply as Optimus fought him, seemingly unable to shake him. My head shot to the others, who were barely holding their own against the possessed Decepticons, even with Silverbolt and the jet firing from overhead. Several of the 'Cons were sparking, screaming and writhing as the salt water sabots did their work, but it wasn't enough alone.

_"Hungry..."_

My head snapped about around as I watched the tentacles beginning to slither towards Optimus. Without hesitating, I fired on The Fallen, but he didn't even flinch. Even as I hit the joints. No where I hit him seemed to do anything, and I could only watch, frozen, as the tentacles made their way closer and closer.

A wave lapping the shore caught my attention, the oddly innocent and peaceful, natural act causing an idea to flash through my mind.

Lurching up, I stumbled across the beach, over broken buildings and burning tanks. Bodies and debris crushed beneath my feet, but for once... I was focused. I ran to the shore, into the water, much as Barricade had done for me. I didn't even feel the pain this time, as I approached the enemy. The adrenaline took me over, and I crouched.

My hand transformed back into a hand, and I cupped my hands together, dipping them into the waves. My bad wrist was the first to protest, _that_ pain making it through the haze of my mind, but even as it registered, I was scooping the water in an arcing wave, right _at_ the open and vulnerable chest of The Fallen.

The water hit the creature, and the reaction was instant.

Just as the tip of one tentacle was about to reach Optimus' vulnerable throat, The Fallen was thrown off him with such force, he looked like he'd been kicked. He flew back, screaming so loudly, _I _cried out, my aching wrists going to my head as my mind spun. The sound sent shockwaves -no pun intended- through my body, making the burning agony of the salt water on my limbs seem like nothing.

I hit my knees in the sand, covering my sensitive ears as the screams continued. The pain was sharp, like a jagged knife being dug into my head. Arms gripped at me, pulling me out of the water, but at that moment, it could have been The Fallen himself looking for retribution, and I couldn't have moved to stop him.

Sand burned my legs, and I heard other screams distantly. And shouts. And voices in my head, but _his_ scream drove me insane. I couldn't focus on anything else.

Then, it got worse.

The screams only seemed to _increase_ in pitch and volume, though that didn't seem possible before. I think I was screaming along with him. Other bots were screaming too. That much I was aware of. I just didn't know if they were Autobots or Decepticons. Or both. Arms surrounded me, and figures leaned heavily against me, and I only curled up on myself, the sound hurting me. I actually felt something hot and wet running over my hands, from my head.

And then, it stopped.

The worst and loudest scream of them all was the first to stop. Only seconds later, and most of the others stopped in sync with each other, leaving the base deathly silent for several long moments. It was suddenly _so_ quiet, I actually thought I'd gone deaf. Then, there were massive resounding booms, and the ground shuddered as the bots slowly began to fall over.

Whimpering at the pain running through my body, I slowly looked up, opening my eyes, which I hadn't even realized I'd shut. I spotted bots standing around, most of them staring over the mass of fallen bodies with horrified shock. Even tough old Ironhide looked like he'd just had a generation or two scared off his life time.

"Bella?"

Sideswipe's voice was soft, but I winced as the pain in my head protested it.

_**"It hurt us all."**_ He switched to internals, his voice seeming dimmer there. _**"You... You hurt him. Optimus finished him."**_

_**"Threw him in the ocean." **_Came Ironhide's equally as quiet comment. _**"So... That mean it's over?"**_

"Was that the brood mother?" I whispered, shaken. My entire body burned and trembled, and I realized the hold on me was Sideswipe. I leaned into it, taking comfort in the fact he was there. And before I could even worry about Sunstreaker's absense, he crouched in front of me. Reaching out, I took his hand.

_**"It's over."**_ Optimus' voice rang through our processors. Quieter than normal, but still strong and full of authority. _**"Once he was thrown in the ocean, The Fallen offlined. The creature within him..."**_ He seemed to hesitate.

_**"It withered."**_ Came Wheeljack's unsurprisingly fascinated voice. _**"It shriveled and withered, curling in on itself. It appeared to dry out, and turn to dust."**_

_**"And the others?"**_

_**"Offline. All of them. Bots and symbiots alike. Looks like they took the Decepticons with them."**_

_**"Wait, doesn't that meant the war's over?"**_ Elita-one's voice was hesitantly hopeful.

I think everyone was in shock. Somehow, it all felt anti-climactic. We were winning. Then we were losing. Then, with a handful of water, we changed our luck, and Optimus Prime won it for us. Somehow, it felt...too easy, but hey, I'm not going to complain. There's a reason most movies aren't real.

_**"There are probably other Decepticons out there, looking for fights."**_ Ironhide vented, sounding more of disbelief than anything else.

_**"And we will meet them. Autobots, we need to check on our human allies, and clean up the base. Medical team will remain on mainland until we're absolutely certain it's safe. Take stock of any injuries, or if anyone looks or acts unusually."**_

_**"The brood mother's gone." **_Wheeljack disagreed with Optimus. _**"Without her, any of her drones would have offlined. I don't believe we're at threat of allies turning bad."**_

_It's...really over?_ I looked around. I couldn't help the disbelief, even though I spotted The Fallen's lifeless body barely visible over the crashing waves. Or the relief at seeing Starscream lying face down, even as Sunstreaker ran and began beating on the body. Apparently, he was pissed _he_ wasn't the one to offline him. ...Oops?

_**"Regardless. It's best to be safe."**_

Barricade walked over then, holding his bleeding side. He seemed to look me over, before looking at the others. He crouched next to me, before dropping heavily to the sand and sagging in on himself. "Primus, I need a vacation!"

Despite everything, I couldn't help a small, breathless laugh.

"You and me both."

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Shock._

_I always knew I wasn't the only one capable of feeling it. I guess I just expected, after millenia at war, the bots would be more adaptable to everything. However, my first moments after those agonizing screams were nothing but shock._

_It's over._

_It's...really and truly over._

_The war's finally over, for the most part._

_No more Decepticon leaders to lead them against us. A good portion of the known survivors of the initial war had died in this battle. Some had joined us. We didn't lose anyone, thank PRIMUS! And, the biggest of all shocks, no one was severly injured!_

_Ratchet sounded ready to start dancing a jig when he heard that part._

_Frightening image._

_I still couldn't get the feeling out of my head about how anti-climactic the whole thing was. I kept expecting a bigger finish, or something, but hey... This is real life, I suppose. _

_But... I think the biggest thing I noticed was the fact that _everyone_ was in shock. The Autobots automatically threw each and every body in the ocean, as far out as they could, and left them there for the human military to drag out to...where ever it was they'd hidden Megatron's body originally._

_Each and every body was double checked, to make sure there was no chance of infection._

_Then, I watched as, nearly every single bot just...sat down. Once the threats were gone, the Autobots and former 'Cons just...found a quiet place and sat down, almost all of them looking helpless._

_Wow... I guess I'm not the only one in shock._

_-Bella_

* * *

**Note** : Sorry about the anti-climactic ending, my muse isn't all that great for TF fighting scenes anymore -_-' I'm just thankful I have a muse to finish this story at all. :) I think there will be like one more chapter, just to kind of wrap things up.

**Written** : June 2, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


	96. Epilogue

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note**: Sorry guys, again, for the lack in updating. I kinda MEANT to make you all wait a bit, just for the sake of suspense, but it went a little longer than planned, so I do apologize for that. Here is the last chapter, ending my story at a whopping 96 chapters. I can't thank you all enough for sticking with me as long as you have, and all your encouraging words.

This will probably be my last Transformers fanfiction for a while. I'm having a little trouble with a muse that wants to write everything, but doesn't give me the chance to complete one story before it's hopping to the next, so I don't even know _what_ I'll be writing for next. LOL

Currently, it's Nolan-verse's Batman. *Drool* Bale Wayne... But yeah, I have Vampire Diaries stories in the mix as well as a number of others, and about half of the eighty some-odd stories I've started in the past three months are crossovers... Yeah, not sure _where_ I'm going next. XD

But thank you all very much, and I'm glad you liked it.

Oh, and side note? SLAGGIT SITE! STOP CHANGING YOUR FRAGGING SETTINGS!

***Facepalm***

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Peace. It's an awkward thought to get used to. Sure, I don't mean peace as in 'never fight again'. We're on Earth. Humans will always find _something_ to fight over. Not to mention, though most of the remaining Decepticons fled or pled loyalty to Optimus, there are still a few I had a feeling would cause problems._

_But with The Fallen out of the picture, as well as Megatron _and_ Starscream, _and_ Shockwave... We had a chance, right? I'm still a little...disappointed? Miffed? Feeling jipped? ...Well, mostly relieved, that the battle was anti-climactic. I suppose, after reading fanfictions and seeing the movies, I keep expecting the 'final battle' to be totally epic and noteworthy. _

_Or at least for several good bots to die._

_I suppose the symbiote that possessed the bots was both a blessing and a curse. It made them stronger, all but impervious to most weaknesses, but confront it with _it's_ greatest weakness, and you could take them all down with ease. It's still just shocking that by focusing on the main symbiote and taking it out, we took down the entire army._

_It's...frightening, actually._

_But who am I to look a gift horse in the mouth? _

_On the upside, 'Kaela's doing a _hell_ of a lot better. She's happy and healthy, and she's been allowed out of medical bay on the vow that she'd take it easy. Bumblebee, whose finally getting to use his voice a little, even vowed to _make_ her, if he had to._

_I think Barricade's more relieved by his charge's status as a Cybertronian. He seems to be taking Jesse under his wing, even if it means having to deal with Jesse's girl of choice, Rika._

_Me? I'm just... I'm going to take the peace as it comes. This road has been long and torturous, with ups and downs that would make most rollercoasters look like a smooth, steady track in comparison. We went from nearly shard-hunters... No, we _were_ shard-hunters for a while. Then we took out parasite-infected Decepticons._

_No. I'm not going to worry about the past, and what might be to come. I'm going to relax. _

_I think even boss bot's finally doing so, and if Prime feels it's okay to take it easy, I don't suppose I can argue, now can I?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**(A Little While Later)**

The sun was warm, and I smiled a little. I could hear Sam and Mikeala off in the distance, talking and laughing. They'd finally settled down, and it seemed like all was well with them. Most of the rest of the humans had gone home to spend time with their families, now that it seemed the world was safe. Simmons was being watched by Blackout and the minor twins, all of which _loved_ harassing him about his mommy issues.

Maggie had gone down to Australia to visit her family. She called me every once in a while to complain about the difference in temperature, and how bored she was now that the world wasn't ending, but I could hear the happiness in her voice.

Judy and Ron were incognito. I didn't _want_ to know, thank you very much. The look on Sam's face was one of vague mortification, and that spoke volumes.

Will was one of the last to leave, going to spend some personal time with his wife and daughter, but he ended up taking Ironhide and Chromia, and little Hopper with him. It seems the little mech had taken a liking to Annabelle in the brief periods of meeting her after the final battle, and vice versa.

Not sure how the parents felt, but Hopper had this way about him... If you said no, he'd just find a way to tag along anyways.

The Autobots were mostly still recovering from the shock of the anti-climactic final battle, and the fact it really seemed _over_. I'm not sure yet what Optimus plans to do, but I think he was mentioning something about using the power of the remaining Allspark shards to create a new home.

Not recreate Cybertron. There still wasn't enough energy for that. But maybe colonize a nearby planet?

The idea of leaving Earth was both frightening and exciting, but I'm not sure how the humans would feel about it. Probably similarly. It wouldn't be happening any time soon, however. Not until there was absolutely _no_ chance of Decepticons seeping out of the woodwork to finish what Megatron and The Fallen had started.

Until then...

Feeling something sliding ticklishly along my arm, I found myself smiling. My eyes had fallen closed in my semi-relaxed stated, and I didn't bother to open them. I was dressed in a black bikini and a pair of matching sunglasses, sitting back on a large rock for tanning purposes.

Not that I could tan, but it was one of those human things I adored, so I kept up with it.

"Aren't you going to look at me?" Came the slightly husky tone.

I kept up my smile and shrugged. "I'm comfy as I am." I giggled a little, brushing his hand away. "And I know what you look like." I was teasing, and we both knew it. Feeling a presence on my other side, I felt my smile turn into more of a smirk. "Well, hello to you, too, Sunstreaker."

Did I mention that Will had taken Sunfire with him and Hopper? Evidently, despite having more than her fair share of Cybertronians, Sunfire was one Sarah couldn't get enough of.

I couldn't really blame her.

"Bella." His voice, too, was husky.

Now I _did_ open my eyes, squinting against the sun and shooting the boys a look. "Okay, what's up with you two?" Their husky tones, and what I felt sliding over our bond, was...definitely not what I was used to. Okay, so I'd felt desire from them both. Especially when I managed a move that ended up shocking Ironhide, and getting a good hit in.

Apparently strong, feisty femmes is what those boys love.

They exchanged grins, and I felt my eyes narrow. "Sunstreaker... Sideswipe..." My eyes shot over to the two humans, to see them long since gone. Bumblebee was too, though, so I wasn't worried. Slowly, however, my gaze turned back to the twins, before my eyes widened. "Tell me you didn't unblock that channel_ again_!" I all but squeaked, remembering how I'd had to block it three times, whenever I returned home for 'updates' (there were none, by the way), and they continuously unblocked it, and would sit down and watch the channel...

Their twin grins only grew, and I groaned on the rock.

"Why me? I ask them not to unblock it, and what do they do? I ask them not to watch it, because it's _embarrassing_, and _what_ do they do? I ask them to at least keep it down, so any _other_ accompanying Autobots don't get wind of what they're up to, and what do-MMPH!" I broke off my rant, feeling lips pressed against my own.

My eyes flew open, before falling shut, and I returned the surprisingly soft kiss. No matter how much we did this, I never got used to feeling it. Warm, soft lips, the taste slightly metallic. If I concentrated enough (which was a feat, let me tell you), I could feel the energy humming below the surface, but other than that, it felt...like a human kiss.

Just when my oxygen tanks (Hey, look! The terms are coming easier to me!) started to strain under the lack of oxygen, the lips pulled back, and I breathed deeply, opening my eyes to see Sunstreaker smirking down at me.

"Point to that, or did you just wanna kiss me?" I asked, raising an eyebrow with a grin.

"Point to it." He shrugged, casually.

"And that would be...?" When he only grinned at me, I felt my other eyebrow hitch up as well. "To shut me up, maybe?" His look turned briefly mortified, and he began to sputter curses and denials.

"_Actually_-"

It was Sideswipe's voice that silenced Sunstreaker and caught my attention, and I spun to find an unbelieveably devious look on the red twin's face. I felt my eyes narrow, and made to sit up, only to be gently pushed back down again by _both_ twins.

"Actually what?" I challenged, even though I let them push me back down.

"Well, the war's over... You're healed up-"

Mostly, anyways. My wrist was permanently damaged, since the damage proceeded right down into my protoform, and he didn't currently have the supplies on Earth to repair protoform damage. My legs still ached, if I spent too long on them. Another lingering effect. Luckily, though, the rest of my damage was superficial and healed quickly.

"The base is still under human repairs, so we're all still on forced leave-"

A.K.A... _Vacation_!

"And it's just the three of us on an otherwise abandoned strip of beach, with time to spare, on a beautiful day." He grinned brilliantly. "So we thought we'd take this opportunity to learn."

I blinked. The way he stated it sounded so odd coming from him. "We're on vacation, and you want to _learn_?"

He nodded, leaning down to catch my lips in a soul searing kiss. For a moment, my processor just stuttered to a stop, feeling and accepting the kiss, and nothing else. When he pulled back, Sunstreaker took his place, stealing another quick kiss.

"Yes, we want to _learn_."

My mind was blank. I could feel the gentle touches of wandering, curious hands as they explored my arms, legs and stomach. The touches were soothing, but also stirring whenever they strayed a little. As I felt Sideswipe's fingers grazing under the bottom of my bikini top, I shivered a little.

"Learn..." I deadpanned blankly, not really picking up on what he was stating.

He laughed a little, while Sunstreaker huffed in mild annoyance and rolled his eyes. I felt a hand straying up over the top of my bikini bottoms, drifting over my stomach, circling my belly button, and returning to it's explorations of my legs and thighs.

Swallowing thickly, I narrowed my eyes at the boys.

"Well, we've made our holographic forms as anatomically correct to human standards as possible. We've even made modification to sensor nodes and relays to help mimic the same sensations humans would feel." Sunstreaker informed me.

I thought about that for a long moment, forcing my brain to ignore the pleasant touches in order to focus. "So..." Reaching out hesitantly, I ran my hand over his neck, along his collarbone, and down over his chest. I detoured as I went, feeling _his_ hands falling still as I traced along the muscles of his torso.

He was shirtless, like Sideswipe, also enjoying the heat with me. They were both dressed in nothing but a pair of swim trunks in their matching shades.

My fingers slowly trailed to the edge of his trunks, and I felt the desire flare up sharply over our bond. My eyes were locked on his, and I heard his intakes hitch a little as his pupils dilated. His expression was one of confusion, but he made no move to stop me.

My fingers diverted to the side, dancing over the folds in his trunk as they slipped down over his pelvic bone and towards his thigh, and when my eyes slowly dropped to the same general area, they widened and I paused.

"Oh!" Suddenly, it all made sense. Their wanting to 'learn', and I felt myself blushing profusely at being so slow to pick up on it. Then again, in my defense, those hands felt _good_.

"So you understand now?" The look on Sunstreaker's face was intense and amused, but the tone screamed 'FINALLY!'.

"Oh! Yes... Yes, I do." I nodded, still blushing as my eyes were fastened to his lap, where evidence sat of _what_ they wanted to learn. Then, slowly, I raised my eyes. "You realize it's messy, right? Involves exchanging of bodily fluids and all that fun, slimy, sticky, sweaty stuff...?" I grinned as he shuddered in disgust at the mental images I could only imagine my words were drumming up.

Even Sideswipe shuddered a little, but I could see from their expressions they weren't about to give up _that_ easily.

"Wait, just _how_ anatomically correct did you make your holoforms?" I wondered if they even _had_ bodily fluids to, well, you know... _Exchange_. Then I was accosted by mental images of a story I'd once read, where some of the bots weren't really sure about, erm...'certain parts' and sized them wrong.

When my mind dared to enter the territory of the story 'Our Lady of Blessed Acceloration', I had to shake my head violently to clear the mental images of the 'plop, plop, plop' scene that always had me doubling over with laughter just _reading_ it, before I utterly ruined the mood by laughing my ass off here.

"Are you okay, femme? You're shaking your head."

"I'm fine. I was just reminiscing about a story I once read in my own dimension, done on Transformers, that induced mood-killing mental images." I told them, giggling hysterically. Then, I shook my head again, this time in dismissal. "So... You _sure_ you want to try this? For your information, I'm not exactly a professional, but in _this_ case, I think I know the mechanics of it." I grinned then, brightly. "No pun intended."

They stared at me, before exchanging looks. I think that was another thing they found themselves having to adjust to. My occasional quirks, like when I remembered a story, or something about the fandom that they had no idea I knew about.

Then, before anyone could say anything else, Sunstreaker was leaning over me and pinning me to the ground with his body, kissing me deeply. I gave into the kiss eagerly, feeling the heat from not only the day, but the heat radiating from his body warming me quickly.

_I'll take that as a yes._ I thought, letting my hands roam his body. I grinned to myself as I found a particularly sensitive spot, and began tracing around the area, exploring what areas were 'sensitive' and what made him moan. _Oh yeah, I'm definitely in the mood to 'learn'._ I thought as I pulled him closer. _Very, VERY much so!_

* * *

_Dear Diary,_

_Things won't always be good. I think wars are a universal constant, and I wouldn't be surprised to find us caught up in yet another one, before next year is out. For now, I will happily enjoy my time with my new family. I will enjoy learning about my new life._

_I'll enjoy being with my mates, and exploring mate-hood with them, and raising our beautiful sparkling together._

_And most of all?_

_I'm going to enjoy watching Ratchet keel over unconscious when I let him know I'm carrying twins. In fact, I think I'll make it a public announcement, _after_ taking bets on who glitches and who doesn't. I wouldn't be surprised if my twins (my _mates_) join Ratchet, Ironhide and Prowl on the ground._

_And that's not even the half of it! I plan to show the twins _all_ the good pranks on Earth. I plan to prank everybot to the point of losing his or her sanity, and I plan to prove that when it comes to me or the twins... The twins are the _lesser_ of two evils._

_After all, I have a few bots on my hitlist, for various reasons. What kind of femme would I be if I didn't pay them back?_

_-Bella_

* * *

**Note** : I do not own 'OLOBA'. It's a wonderful fanfic that I found absurdly hilarious, done by an author whose full penname I cannot remember at the moment. If you haven't read it, check for it in my favorites. ;) Just a warning, do NOT eat or drink anything while reading it. It's ROFLMMFAOPMSL funny. XD

**Written** : August 8, 2011

Hope you like it.

R+R Please

Thank you

Tenshi


End file.
